Review: NAMASTE BAE, Riverside Studios

“Blessings and kombucha . . .”

Namaste Bae, performed by Rob van Vuuren, a South African comedian, brings us into the world of the titular character who has gone viral around the world for his “power of comedic catharsis.” Being guided by the Mother Scoby, whom he claims to be an oracle of, “Namaste Bae is the guru you both need and deserve.”

There are many claims surrounding the mysterious figure, including that “He was born with a bottle of kombucha in one hand and a yoga mat in the other during a Vedic Shadow Planet eclipse” and that “He takes all the psychedelics so you don’t have to.” Fun fact - his nipples possess healing qualities and can produce trace levels of kombucha. 

In case you aren’t able to tell from the show’s description, Namaste Bae is van Vuuren’s satirical take on the modern yoga culture of the Western world, with the character taking audiences on a five-step journey to reach ascension to be one with the Mother Scoby, a creative reference to the acronym of “Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast” used when referring to a kombucha starter, which can also be known as the “kombucha mother.” His goal of “resetting the vibe” of the audience involves blessing audiences with kombucha (water) and having us participate in an “ancient ritual healing ceremony.”

A strong warning before you go into this show - there is a lot of audience participation, so if that’s not your thing, this may not be the show for you. From the very beginning when we are introduced to Namaste Bae, he walked through the audience, kissing the tops of bald men’s heads and leaning in to breathe onto the glasses of others. Other scenes had him sticking his finger in an audience member’s belly buttons and straddling another person, claiming “It’s for your own health.” But, there is a heavy emphasis on consent, with van Vuuren ensuring audience members that everything is voluntary, making each audience member give, as he calls it, “enthusiastic consent.”

Step one? Steeping off pathogens, as demonstrated by Namaste Bae “docking” with an audience member whose aura has been making him gag since he entered the room, connecting the two as Namaste Bae transfers his life force over in order to help with the vibe. Once the pathogens have been steeped, we move on to step two - cooling. According to Namaste Bae, one audience member in particular is too hot for the rest of the room, so they must be cooled down using the spirit animal dance known as “Urges in the Penguin Cave of Desire,” a personal highlight for me. We then go quickly into step three, fermentation, in which we meditate on what we’ve learned on this “culturally appropriated ritual site.”

Finally, we reach step five of the process to reaching ascension, having skipped step four, tasting, as Namaste Bae declared that we did not need it and could move on (most likely due to time constraints). We are told to discard all of the things holding us back and are encouraged to continue our journey by purchasing things on Namaste Bae’s online shop.

The highlight of the show is van Vuuren’s physicality when portraying Namaste Bae. Most of his catchphrases have hand movements that go along with them that are repeated so often you’ll probably be able to do them along with him! He also is able to make some particularly horrifying facial expressions in a Joker-like fashion, which led to some great responses from the audience. It is also great to see van Vuuren breaking during some truly hilarious audience interaction moments, his whole body shaking as he desperately tries not to crack. 

Ultimately, Namaste Bae is a brilliantly satirical take on yoga culture in the 21st century. Van Vuuren gives an incredible physical performance, truly becoming to guide who will bring audiences closer to the Mother Scoby through his work. Whether you are a mating humpback whale, a gentrified tidal pool or even the Seagull of Solitude, you will have a fantastic time reaching enlightenment. Blessings and kombucha to you all.

Namaste Bae ran from 23 - 28 July at Riverside Studios. The show will then be performed at the 2024 Edinburgh Festival Fringe from 1 - 11 August at Assembly Rooms, Bijou.

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