Brighton Fringe review by Steve Bennett

Warning: this show will probably not teach you to save a life, even if it is grounded in enough real first-aid advice to maintain at least some semblance of credibility.

Roger Clammy is an earnest, monotone, and thoroughly uncertified instructor who has been inspired to share advice on the likes of the recovery position, CPR and techniques to combat choking following the tragic death of his brother.

We, the students, are of course recruited as volunteers for the practical exercises while the obligatory Powerpoint provides the theory, even if someone has been sabotaging some of the slides. Thus the stage is set for some broad farce, made funnier by the fact the underlying situations are so deadly serious.

Sam South – the man behind the character – builds up to this gently, striking a good balance between the various absurd elements of the show, initially underplaying them until some of the more ridiculous features seem almost plausible. Only the way he receives a blow to his head, necessary for the ultimate chaotic collapse of proceedings, is truly over-the-top. 

The character runs the risk of being a one-joke affair, but South fleshes out the show, making his alter-ego so dour and dry to rein in some of the slapstick. Elsewhere he offers some underplayed satire to add extra texture to the comedy, such as any corporate trainer’s love of a good, or even bad, acronym, or the prop comedy of his home-made CPR dummy.

South, who has trained at the Soho Theatre and improv outfit The Free Association, executes his character with all the conviction needed, as well as being certain enough in his creation to take some more raucous audience members in his stride without compromising his low-status shtick.

Clammy is neither the sort of extravagantly broad nor devastatingly accurate comedy character that becomes an instant classic, but How To Save A Life is a solidly funny hour – and anyone who can make a heart attack funny must have something going for them.
 

Review date: 8 May 2019
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett
Reviewed at: Brighton The Warren