We’re all just here to have fun, right? Be careful what you wish for in Rhum + Clay’s brilliantly conceived, darkly funny clown two-hander – and where it might lead you. Julian Spooner and Matthew Wells line up the demands of a braying Fringe audience next to a plummet into authoritarianism to chilling effect, with a final veer sideways into even bleaker (if somewhat more opaque) material. But ‘Project Dictator’ is never preachy: the gags – visual and spoken – come thick and fast in Spooner and Wells’s propulsive, agile performance, even if the laughter might often catch in your throat. Not always subtle, this is nonetheless a timely, intelligent response to current events, carried off with verve, insight and relentless energy. 

Pleasance Courtyard, until 27 Aug. 
tw rating 4/5 | [David Kettle]