Review: Bill’s 44th, EdFringe

Underbelly – Belly Button

I first came across Bill’s 44^th several years ago at the London International Mime Festival and I loved it. Since then, I just can’t stop thinking about the show, and was more than a little over-excited to see it was on at this year in Edinburgh. I snapped up a ticket and ran down to Underbelly – Belly Button, ‘accidentally’ pushing about 50 people out of the way to take front place in the queue. All this time later, and it was absolutely worth waiting for – an undoubted pick of the Fringe!

It’s Bill’s 44th birthday and he’s ready to party! The invitations have gone out and now it’s time for the guests to arrive. He waits, and he waits. He mixes some punch. He tests the punch. Several times. But it seems like no-one is coming. Left to his own devices, Bill’s imagination starts to run away with him, and that’s when the fun really begins.

This is a truly astonishing show on so many levels. The story itself is enormously entertaining, full of humour, insight and gentle reflection on the human condition. Then, it’s also a masterful work of puppetry. Bill himself is a half-body puppet – a classic balding middle-aged man with full Tom Selleck moustache – manipulated with meticulous synchronicity by Dorothy James and Andy Manjuck as his prosthetics. They move almost as if choreographed and in a ballet, totally tuned in to each other’s movements such that a bottle can be thrown through the air from the hand of one performer to that of another and be caught with ease. Together they create an utterly complete, intricately drawn character, with endless, hilarious idiosyncrasies, detailed gestures and some really funky dance moves! Bill’s just an ordinary guy, but you just love him for all his human flaws and features.

The design work for the show is also brilliant. After a few drinks, the evening takes a somewhat surreal twist, involving friendly vegetables and choreographed, smiley balloons. As Bill relaxes with a spliff, the clever, distorting set relaxes with him, manifesting his state of mind. All the while, the fabulous soundtrack by composer Eamon Fogarty effortlessly guides us through Bill’s many emotional ups and downs, using every style from comfortable lounge music to moments of thrash metal.

Just as we’re enjoying the party with Bill and some sociable snacks, Jon Riddleberger, another skilled puppeteer, pops up to help the party connect with the outside world via the TV or by arriving at the door as a pizza delivery guy, before going on to wrangle a host of naughty balloons who drop by (in a seamlessly executed entrance) to disrupt Bill’s evening.

With the three puppeteers in combination, we’re gifted with a simply beautiful sequence where a tiny Bill puppet, totally complementary to his larger self in look and movement, reflects on birthdays past, hair loss, and years wasted at his office desk, leading up to today’s disappointment. It’s searingly poignant and you can’t help but feel for him.

Which all leads us to the end of the show, a superb recognition of the need for self-care, and the opportunity for us to come together, joyfully embrace the moment and celebrate Bill on his special day. This has genuinely been the best birthday party ever! Just can’t wait for next year!

Written and devised by: Dorothy James and Andy Manjuck
Music composed by: Eamon Fogarty

Bill’s 44th runs until 25 August at Underbelly – Belly Button as part of the Edinburgh Fringe. Further details and how to book can be found here.