EDINBURGH 2011: BWW Reviews: LITTLE SHOP OF HOMOS, C Venues, Aug 8

Kevin Sherwin

It's hard to know what to expect when booking a show at the Edinburgh Fringe, particularly when the programme often offers precious little information to inform your decision. But you might think you know what to expect from a show called ‘Little Shop of Homos' (presented by Far From Kansas and featuring members of the London Gay Men's Chorus), right? Filthy double entendres? There are plenty of those. Gayed-up versions of popular songs? Absolutely. Gratuitous displays of male flesh? There's some of that too.

What you might not expect is singing of an exceptionally high standard, but that's what you'll get. While individual voices are impressive throughout (Steven Whyte's I Kissed A Girl is particularly good), the group is at its strongest when in harmony, delivering well-known numbers like Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend and Big Spender flamboyantly but with vocal precision, thanks in no small part to Simon Sharp's musical direction. There are some less familiar songs in the mix, too: a gorgeous cover of Antony & The Johnsons' You Are My Sister is hugely impressive, and I couldn't help but wonder what the talented troupe might be capable of with altogether more serious material.

This show, though, is all about the laughs; the paper-thin plot concerns ludicrously-named gay department store Hardy Dicks, whose sales are dwindling thanks to the rise in competing stores for metrosexual men. The arrival of retail consultant Muscle Mary Queen of Shops instantly lifts proceedings into the realm of the genuinely hilarious, and indeed the hour belongs to Richard Evans' grimacing, fabulously grotesque would-be television personality, a sharp-tongued joy to behold.

Deeply shallow but never less than great fun, it's hard to imagine anyone not enjoying this show, and in a jam-packed Fringe a visit to the Little Shop of Homos seems as close to a guaranteed good time as you're likely to find.