What: Superclump featuring  Henry Paker, Henry Widdicombe,Sian Harries, Mike Wozniak, Elis James, Ben Partridge, Tom Craine, Josh Widdicombe, and Nat Luurtsema.
Where: The GRV
When: 2.40pm, until Sunday 30 August
How Much: £5

In 140 char­ac­ters or less: “If they can just get the timing as fast as a speeding bullet Superclump will become a sketch group of steel.”

I’m not sure how many people are in Superclump. I could find out but I prefer to be happily dazzled and mystified by the array of characters this large and enthusiastic cast play.

This is a bizarre sketch show, with some Big Train-ish moments and lashings of stupid dances. It holds together well, but the pacing sometimes loses its way, leaving the audience unsure when to applaud. Some sketches were just too long (a brilliant stand off between two macho lotharios loses it’s way trying to get to a pun) and others just too short (the annoying Red Riding Hood and her short tempered grandmother).

The acting for the most part is pretty strong: Mike Wozniak is absolutely on top form, and he clearly leads the group on stage. Tom Craine and Nat Luurtsema get some of the best lines, but it’s a real team effort overall and there’s something delightful about watching sketches where you’re never sure quite how many more people will end up on stage.

The team are quite successful in getting all their personalities across, despite playing a variety of characters without breaking the fourth wall particularly often, though it was a charming and revealing moment to see Craine and Elis James corpsing in the Aesop sketch. It’s clear there is a central drive to the sense of humour which makes Superclump great, and with such a large cast they could have easily lost their way with this.

In order to really get the most out of this show, watch out for when sketches take a darker turn: a dance turns bizarrely violent, children play some very odd games, and just wait until you find out what’s in the party bags…

There are definitely a few dud moments they could scrap in this show, and it suffers mildly from the post-lunch sleepy slot, but when Superclump shine they really dazzle.

Festbuzz Rating:

Words: Elise Bramich

In 140 characters or less: “Warehouse 364: Where good things happen to bad people. Like Cube meets In Bruges.”

A tale of interconnected, but seemingly disparate, strangers embroiled in dastardly goings on as a result of some farcical misunderstandings. Warehouse 364 would have all the makings of a turn-of-the-century parlour comedy were it not for the brash language and motley crew of unsavoury characters which inhabit this slightly surreal underworld.

The show is about the singular part time prostitute Eleanor, better known as simply E. Oddly starting the show with a monologue about loss of innocence, childhood, and distance, Anna Sherriff plays an aimless yet brave heroine whose fate is determined more by happenstance than any of her own failings.

The story follows E as she aspires towards a better life after a chance meeting and miscommunication with villain Tuffnell (a world weary Tom Warren), and a fleeting glimpse of the money and potential power that could be hers.

As a result, she finds herself in the gangland hangout of master drug criminals, (though slightly more eccentric and eloquent than I imagine real drug runners are), trying to escape a maze-like series of rooms, chased by her hapless roommate Sally (exasperated mother-figure Laura Wishart), and a bizarre selection of thugs desperate for blood, revenge and answers.

Will Vickers is a bit of a treat as head thug Lipson, whom he has chosen to portray as something of a Malcolm Tucker, the anti-hero spin doctor from BBC hit satire The Thick of It. A psychopath in the true sense of the word, his scathing remarks are far more chilling than the rest of his gun-toting antics, and it’s a proper delight to watch his underlings squirm under his gaze.

The only unsettling thing about Warehouse 364 is the lack of a moral centre: while I don’t believe any piece of art needs a singular purpose or ethical message to be successful, I was left doubting my sympathies for any of the characters, and feeling slightly disappointed that there wasn’t any real resolution to the plot. However, though the sudden ending left me crestfallen, I heartily enjoyed the ride.

Festbuzz Rating:

Words: Elise Bramich