I was walking down the Cowgate the other day, when a smiling, picture-postcard of a face gave me a flyer for his elongatedly titl’d show, Fifteen Pints With a Wax Figure of Renowned Painter Pablo Picasso. His name was Cobin Millage, he was Canadian, & I just liked his vibe immediately & immensely. But what would his actual show be like?
“It’s hard to be horny when an Eastern European tour guide says a thousand children died in this room”
For starters, it’s in the Three Sisters ‘Wee Room,’ that despitr it’s working mean’s club upholster’d leather seating, is really a janitor’s storage room. Saying that, 15 of us were seated in some comfort, while Cobin tower’d over us all on his tiny, yet lofty stage. It was altogether an authentic enough experience, & the sheer closeness to the artist introduced a pleasant intimacy. In fact, I literally could listen to Cobin speak all day long, so warm is his voice & so gentle is his aura – he’s a really nice guy, like!
Cobin’s comedy is a quirky carousel – sometimes terrapin snappy, at other times spending a minute or so leading up to a single, not always majestic, punch-line. But, & at all times, he really is a splendid watch, slipping in & out of the real man & his comedy persona so much it gets difficult to tune into the exact frequency needed – or perhaps that’s just all a part of his act.
The show also contains several of these excellent mini-plays, such as the autopsy of Julius Ceasar, where he takes on multiple speaking roles with an entertaining confidence. The finale is also very funny, a scripted read-out assisted by a member of the audience, & to me a unique ending after soooo many Fringe shows these dozen years past. I can also declare with great confidence that I will definitely go & see Cobin again – he’s settl’d in Scotland now & has firmly planted his sonic blip on the Mumble’s coverage radar.
Damo
themumble.uk 