What Doesn’t Kill You (blah blah) Stronger
This is a Fringe World favourite, with Holland Street Productions’ What Doesn’t Kill You (blah blah) Stronger winning the Martin Sims Award for Best New Production in its first season. Returning with a more relaxed air befitting its performance tent in the Pleasure Garden venue, this funny and clever cabaret has lost none of its kick.
Focusing on near death experiences, this cabaret, featuring all original songs, tells the highly unlikely but true stories of people who have “lived to tell the tale” after often bizarre brushes with death.
With jaunty enthusiasm, performers Tyler Jacob Jones and Erin Hutchinson, both of whom sing with expertise and have outstanding rapport, sing the stories of survivors including Alexander Selkirk - the inspiration for Robinson Crusoe, Alabama housewife Ann Hodges who survived a meteorite strike and Violet Jessop, who survived three Shipwrecks - including the Titanic.
The show features a variety of musical styles from Calypso to Opera and there is even a mini musical with Tyler and Erin switching into multiple roles with panache.
Joe Louis Robinson on keyboard provides excellent musical accompaniment, and the show is pacy, warm and very, very funny.
This unique, energetic and endearing production is a great choice for those who appreciate clever humour, good original music or simply something different, and an excellent way to kick off FringeWorld 2025.
Kimberley Shaw
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