FRINGE 2019: James Donald Forbes McCann: Devil’s Advocate – 5K – Rhino Room

James Donald Forbes McCann is here to defend indefensible statements.

When you enter the Rhino Room, you’re asked to write down a statement that not a single person can defend. Maybe even the worst thing you can think of. You put it in the bucket, take your seat, and out comes James.

One by one (with the help of an MC, in this session it’s comedian Corey White), James takes each statement and defends it. He has no idea what any of these statements are going to be – indeed, he often remarks on themes that emerge with surprise, in this session the themes were inexplicably foreskins and anti-vaxxing – and has to completely improvise his answers.

Watching McCann first sweat, then masterfully defend these ridiculous statements, is absolutely hilarious. McCann’s intelligence comes through immediately as he talks about history, socio-politics, and social issues when defending a statement about Kanye West’s recent work. His skill to improvise is fantastic and you’ll be cringing, yes, but mostly laughing as he works his way through the statements one-by-one.

Having seen McCann’s work over the past few Fringes, I can say that this is his best show yet – fully realised, a genius concept (you can come back time and time again and see a vastly different show), and truly funny. He won Best Comedian at this week’s Fringe awards – don’t miss out on the opportunity to see why he’s deserving of that award.

Kryztoff rating: 5K

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