Boorish Trumpson

Edinburgh Fringe – Assembly

Initially unassuming, Claire Parry’s Boorish Trumpson is an example of how art can surprise you.

This is a clown show, where Parry plays Boorish, an erratic, rehearsal conductor trying to prove himself and pushing against the judgment and derision of his peers. The idea is that Boorish is a rehearsal conductor for an orchestra, is a very unique fish out of water in a rather traditional, establishment centric scenario. It almost becomes a study of what happens when someone who usually has very little power, gets  some, and how much havoc they can then subsequently reap. It becomes very clear very quickly that Boorish isn’t your typical clown, much to our amusement.

”Parry is a physically dominating presence that consistently puts us on edge in a fun way”

Parry’s performance is like an exaggeration of something Weird Al Yankovic might do, but pushed even further to the extreme. Boorish has this large personality that is more in the extremes of emotions that Parry conveys than anything else that makes us laugh. Because we never know just what’s going to happen or what direction she will take this; we’re either laughing out of finding it genuinely funny or being nervous that Boorish’s ire will be turned on us. There’s a lot of humour that is just so ridiculous that we can’t help but laugh, as Parry builds upon layers and layers of these erratic, outrageous characteristics, slapstick moments and repeating gags that put us in stitches and draw us into interacting with this character. Parry encourages us to push back and we do fully engage; it’s a show we really show to get into to the point of wanting to be a part of it. 

Whilst we’re sort of aware of who exactly this is a thinly-veiled caricature of, it really doesn’t need those references, in fact Parry does so much without quoting directly from these individuals that it actually becomes the weakest part, because of how much it seems like it’s shoe-horned in more than anything. It must have been such a challenge to create a character with a bigger personality than the sources of inspiration, but Parry astonishingly does it. There are moments where Parry shows us flashbacks from Boorish’s childhood, and whilst it makes sense in terms of character development, it dampens the mood  (because we do start to feel sorry for him a little) and again just seems out of place with the rest of the comedy. The show is already devastatingly  funny, and this time could be used instead  further Boorish’s character or personality or one of the repeating gags that just get funnier as the show goes on. 

Boorish Trumpson is such a character in of themselves, and is a physically dominating presence that consistently puts us on edge in a fun way, to the point where audiences interaction doesn’t seem daunting and in fact makes us want to be part of it. Hopefully this is the first in a long series of Boorish Trumpson scenarios. 

By Katerina Partolina Schwartz

Photo Credit: Jack Daly