Elf Lyons has got to be one of my favourite artists. She’s one of those artists that you want to see everything they do and scramble to be able to. When I knew she was doing another show, I had to run to get on the press list for this.
Previously, Elf has produced shows, mostly with an animal inspiration to them: think horses, birds, and yet all with something underlying and personal about them. Whether it be on her favourite films or something a little deeper. However, The Women On The Edge is the most personal and vulnerable to date. Based on her failed engagement, Elf using old Hollywood movies, inspiration of one of her favourite films and tales, Apollo 13 and the impact of toxic males while dating in your 30’s to bring this production about picking oneself up and getting through the hardest times.
Elf in herself is a tour de force. She is unlike any performer you have seen, combining clowning, comedy and something quite meta about being an artist. She isn’t afraid to call a spade a spade, particularly when it comes to calling out men or the closed minded people in press and this confidence in itself is inspirational. She has this amazing ability to move from character to character, sometimes even with the simplest of comedy but also with something sometimes darker and sometimes controversial. She cleverly manages to seamlessly flit between these and therefore the comedy is constant, with impeccible timing to let yoy digest before the next laugh.
It makes it all the more surprising when we get to the real intense, vulnerable parts. She bares her soul, supported with verbatim recordings by loved ones, where we get the sense of the real impact this life changing event had on her. Of course, we begin this, knowing she is a comedian, and thinking that this is likely to be a very funny and unserious view on this event. But she doesn’t let us get too settled in this. And by the end, she delivers a rousing speech of self love, of getting through the hard times, and speaking to child Elf to let them know they are loved and wanted. For anyone who has really struggled with anything touching upon feeling worthless, this hits really hard and you unexpectedly end in tears and in a place you really weren’t expecting from a trained clown.
Elf Lyons Is The Woman On The Edge is a fantastic performance, where her soul is bared for all of us to see, to give you that support that you weren’t expecting if you’ve ever hit rock bottom and along the way, somehow, making you constantly laugh.
