Review by Corry Shaw

The fourth star on this review comes with a caveat. You must be 100 per cent up for this show if you are going to find it as enjoyable as you should.

Andy Davies's creation Quint Fontana is the Ron Burgundy of lounge singers with all the cheesiness, theatrics and facial hair to match. This is a glorious and ridiculous hour of stories, songs and despair as we witness the comeback/breakdown of the once successful pop star.

Fontana's keyboard player Tony Lakeside hasn't spoken to him for two years, which adds a nice dynamic to the onstage chemistry between the duo, with Lakeside remaining silent throughout. Fontana uses some old techniques with new twists to demonstrate just how low he has gone. Downing bottles of scotch and vodka on stage is nothing new and the audiences far too savvy to believe it's anything but water or apple juice, but his new take on the old trope is fresh and with its repetition just gets funnier and funnier.

It is a fairly bleak hour, narrative-wise, with Fontana explaining the demise of his career and his relationship, all nicely illustrated with some ridiculous and hilarious songs.  He is a genuinely talented singer who is choosing to devote this gift to the most basic and stupid comedy songs ever heard; Licking A Toad to the tune of King Of The Road may not sound like something special written down but it is an absolute joy to watch.

And herein lies the rub, it is almost impossible to describe this act without making it sound truly horrendous and hack, and there were a couple of walk-outs tonight. But Davies has invested so much energy into this character if you submit to his charms there is no doubt you will be captivated.  He makes each individual member of the audience feel valued as he directs serenades or asides to the small gathering and no-one escapes a mention as he collapses further into his bottle of rum.

This is joy in its most simple form, it's not going to make you think but my God it will make you laugh.

Review date: 22 Aug 2013
Reviewed by: Corry Shaw