The Pianist

‘The Pianist’ presented by Thomas Monckton and Circus Aero.

Fresh from the Edinburgh Fringe and London Mime Festival and briefly appearing in Perth, the energetic Thomas Monckton’s mishap after mishap across the stage leaves you howling with laughter and wondering if the (somewhat) eponymously named show’s ‘Pianist’ will ever actually play anything!  Award winning New Zealand performer Monckton crawls, dances, falls, stands, falls, swings across the Fishtrap Theatre stage at the Mandurah Performing Arts Centre in a wonderfully intimate seating confounding social niceties by walking over (…his I hope!) grand piano.  

The set up for a formal concert piano recital is constantly thwarted with imaginative encounters along the way that take you from growing a tree, the life and death cycle and the banality of inanimate objects.

Premiering in Finland in 2013 this delightful show is one not to miss!  I laughed so much my face was hurting at the end.  Thomas Monckton has an extraordinarily flexible body and a face that communicates his emotions with crystal clear clarity and spot on comic timing. His passion is shown in what might be called recklessness – think Rowan Atkinson’s Mr Bean –  but Monckton is much more socially cluey with audience engagement and always spot on with his ‘nod, nod, wink, wink’ moments, which make fun of both himself and the complicity of the audience.  As in, when he finally puts fingers to the keyboards he comes out with some tuneful stuff!  Who knew, after all that careless abandonment of flinging himself from one side of the stage to the other?  But the look he slyly gives the audience is just pure gold.

Thomas Monckton is a fantastically worthy successor in the ilk of John Cleese’s ‘Fawlty Towers’ Baasilllll and Rowan Atkinson’s Mr Bean.  It’s hard not to enormously appreciate this clever brave performer doing his darndest to ensure you don’t stop laughing during this show.  We didn’t!  The Pianist is a show that everyone in our group loved – there was slapstick, more subtle quiet moments, amazing acrobatics, spine tingling contortions, reflective moments of finger puppetry, audience interaction – Monckton does it all.   Without a single word.  His miming genius evokes Marcel Marceau and Charlie Chaplin.  One of the best things about this show is that it is constantly surprising.  Monckton is a true original.

The Pianist has been performed throughout Europe to sold out theatres largely due to word of mouth, so you have been warned.  Do not miss the opportunity to laugh uproariously with brilliant performer Thomas Monckton at Adelaide Fringe from 13th February to 5th March 2016.  It will be the highlight of your year!

https://www.adelaidefringe.com.au/fringetix/the-pianist-by-thomas-monckton-circo-aereo/5e5a62e7-34af-448b-9445-5f102bbb1ccf

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

The Pianist