Kate Hammer review: A dynamic and natural stand-up
Edinburgh Fringe
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Edinburgh Fringe 〰️
Image: Chris Dudley
by Zoe Paskett
If there are two things Kate Hammer knows how to do, it's fill out a Visa application and entertain a crowd.
Government Approved Comedian centres around Kate’s mission to lock down a Global Talent Visa and the various hoops she’s had to jump through in order to stay in Scotland (don’t just take the fact that she is in Scotland doing her show as evidence that her application was successful — she could be here illegally, you don’t know).
In a smart move that makes what could be a dry subject matter into something fun and interactive, she uses an audience member as a proxy to try to meet the requirements. Form-filling with friends is so much more fun! And you know what, yeah, audiences should make more effort to prove they can do the job properly.
She’s dynamic and natural on stage, a simultaneously high-powered and relaxed stand-up. From leaving her Ontario upbringing on a goat farm (and the associated body horror of being the only one with an arm small enough to sort out certain…problems) to the bright traffic lights of Glasgow where she’s a keen and conscientious cyclist, Kate introduces herself as a confident performer, able to keep hold of a complex set of threads that allow her to jump around and always find her way back.
Routines that showcase her physical comedy chops really shine, whether it’s about her argument for sex as an Event with a capital E, or her desperation to show off her party trick at every possible opportunity.
There’s a point in the show where she shares some embarrassment about so doggedly following your dream in this day and age, but in my view, for Kate, comedy seems less like a dream and more of an inevitability. This natural talent locked in a desk job? I call that a waste!
No spoilers as to the outcome of her application, but you’ll leave Kate’s show absolutely convinced: we’ve gotta keep her!
Kate Hammer: Government Approved Comedian is at Monkey Barrel Comedy, The Studio, 17:00 (not 19th). Tickets here
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