MICF - Trent Baumann: Late Night Birdman

With a gravity-defying mohawk, an ill-fitting suit and a nervy swagger, Birdman hits the stage to a bewildered audience. It takes a while to warm to Birdman, since the show defies easy categorisation and the audience is generally pretty clueless as to what to expect. One he settles into a rythym, the laughs slowly grow as the slightly silly grows into the rather absurd which soon evolves into the clinically insane. Late Night Birdman is one part monologue, one part social commentry, one part circus freak show, one part musical comedy, one part origami. Most probably, it is the only show at the festival that combines these five ingredients, plus an olive in the glass as per house rules at the ultra-chic Kitten Club. The act is fun rather than funny, with Birdman showing off his oddball selection of tricks (pouring tea through his nose, gargling the national anthem) whilst nervously uttering a lame pun here and there. To reach the stage of actually being amusing rather than just freaky, Birdman needs to improve his delivery and command the room's attention rather than meekly requesting it.

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