ED2015 4/5 Reviews ED2015 Comedy Reviews

Joseph Morpurgo – Soothing Sounds For Baby (The Invisible Dot Ltd)

By Rebecca Jacobson | Published on Friday 28 August 2015

Anybody who’s ever rummaged through a bin of old LPs knows that the discs are always good for a few giggles – get a load of that comb-over or that spangled unitard. But the impish Joseph Morpurgo knows the true comic potential of old, obscure records. Structured as an episode of ‘Desert Island Discs’ – complete with patched-together dialogue from Kirsty Young – ‘Soothing Sounds for Baby’ takes us through the comedian’s collection, from suave jazz musician Stanley Clarke to an A.A. Milne tale, which Morpurgo gives a Lovecraftian twist. At its core, it’s a tender story of young love lost, but it’s carried by Morpurgo’s gift for offbeat language: a pianist becomes an “ivory groper”, while a sad yet playful Brahms composition is “like playing origami with a will”.

Pleasance Courtyard, until 31 Aug.
tw rating 4/5 | [Rebecca Jacobson]