Review: WHAM BAM THANK YOU MAM, VAULT Festival

"It's a woman's world so to speak, pussy you sour, never given credit where it's due cause you don't like pussy in power. Venom"

Three cloaked figures on a stage flush with red light, Little Simz blasting on the speakers. It sounds like a gothic adaptation of a Margaret Atwood novel. What comes next is something equally dynamic, from three of London's sharpest rising comedy stars.

Wham Bam Thank You Mam is a collaboration straight from the minds of Frances Keyton, Su Mi and Marty Gleeson. Exploring heartache, cultural identity, and ways to stick a middle finger up at social expectation, this trio have combined an hour of captivating storytelling with some truly brilliant comedic skill. Keyton, Mi, and Gleeson have a magnitude of comedy award wins and shortlist positions between them, and this show gives a taste of the very best that each has to offer.

Catholic-raised Keyton shares the tribulations of claiming her sexual identity as an adult whilst grappling with her father's passion for writing erotic fiction. A West End New Act of the Year 2022 finalist, she weaves between confident humour and openness with ease. There is space to not only laugh with her, but to laugh at some of the sexual encounters that we've all tumbled through in our twenties.

It's rare to find a comic whose playful relationship with suspense has an audience laughing before they've even spoken, but this seems to be Marty Gleeson's superpower. Gleeson demonstrates excellent control of tension and anticipation in complete juxtaposition to the traditional assumptions of comedy crowd work. It's no wonder she's a winner of the Pete Nash Award for Comic Originality.

Su Mi is unashamedly loud, and you can't help but love her for it. Queerovision and Beat the Frog 2022 winner, Mi transforms multiple times throughout her solo set and truly shows off every string to her bow, but what never faulters is the clarity of her perspective on social prejudice as an Asian woman. Did I mention she's also a wonderful musician?

There's something refreshing about watching these three take the reins of stand up and drive it into a sphere that's completely unique. It feels like a cautious imagination but Wham Bam Thank You Mam is a vibrant antithesis to comedy convention; long gone are the days of white men tearing into everyone else in the name of dark humour, there's now a direct confrontation to others capitalising at your own expense.

Keyton, Mi, and Gleeson bounce off each other with an absolute comfort that's a joy to watch. It's totally apparent why all three are established within their own right, but their shared comedy ethic and audience appreciation further prove that sometimes wicked humour multiplied by three is the way forward.

You can next catch these three at The Glitch but keep an eye out for Edinburgh Fringe dates coming soon.

Wham Bam Thank You Mam is at The Glitch on 21 April 2023

Photo credit: Suhaili Suhaimi

VAULT Festival has been left without a venue for next year. You can contribute to the #SaveVAULT campaign here.

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