A wealth of ideas have been thrown into this colourful exploration of celebrity and public philanthropy, but as a whole the piece lacks clarity. With an energetic cast of three and a clumsy overload of screens, Telethon, by theatre company Talk Show, feels like a work-in-progress.
This is an ambitious presentation of a chaotic 24-hour televised charity special (actually performed in 90 minutes). Attempting to unite the public to fight the climate crisis, the event is hosted by three bouncy caricatures of C-listers – YouTuber Kris (Archie Backhouse), CBeebies science presenter Erica (Erin Hutching) and disgraced TV star Jennifer (Katie Lovell). Written and directed by Stu Barker and Clare Dunn, the structure and setup are rife for satire, but the comedy feels limp. The stolid structure veers between pre-recorded segments which rid the piece of urgency, direct addresses to nonexistent cameras, and awkward interactions with us, the sparsely used live studio audience.
