Death of the Human Resource
There’s a report of a murder. Maybe. No-one can find the body, so it could just be a missing person. Nevertheless, desperate for action, Officer Thalia and Sergeant Melpo rush to the scene of the crime: a typical office, where everyone from accounts, IT and the manager himself are suspects.
It’s played as a comedy from the start, with Pip O’Shea displaying great comic talent as Thalia, the detective without much of a clue. Hers is the only character with clear definition and individuality: the others are caricatures of nepotism and nerds and the performers don’t offer much subtlety in either purpose or comedy. It’s very loud and brash, which the friendly audience seemed to enjoy.
The story by Sean Guy has promise – there’s plenty of originality in the main plotline, and though its execution feels familiar, the twists are just enough to be surprising. The comedy hits and misses, but even when it lands, it’s derivative and over-used – the stick-on lie detectors are funny the first few times, but then the audience know the punchline and sit waiting for it to buzz or ping.
The ensemble is from Big Dog Salad, a Darwin-based sketch comedy group – and it shows, with the scenes played out more standalone than telling a fluid story. The performance relies on the actors more than props or set, but for a show that won a Best Theatre award at Darwin Fringe, it should be slicker and tighter than this.
Yet it’s still a little bit of fun to wind down this year’s Fringe, and its vocal supporters will be cheering them to the final curtain.
Review by Mark Wickett
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