Everything is a Lie – Show Review
A millennial crisis seeps through the soul of Lauren Edwards, as she reaches the late stages of her thirties and cannot run from the existential dread of her life and much of the current state of the entire world around her.
What’s a millennial like Edwards to do when she’s faced with all these issues clouding over and above her? To perform a stand-up comedy show about it of course!
There’s no warming up the crowd for Edwards as she dives straight into the show, sharing her dismay and inner frustration about everything and anything. You get a feeling that if the world came crashing down beneath Edwards’ feet any day now, then she might not be that bitter about it all.
It’s both personal and systemic, as she gives you her down-load of what’s going on in her crazy world, from her star signs, joining facebook groups to grow your career, marriage, high school reunions, elitism, anti-capitalism, #girlbossing and hustle culture, climate anxiety, early 90’s and 2000’s nostalgia, and hyper and toxic positivity.
Her jokes on these topics focus on the overall stereotypes and representations, rather than focussing on specific individuals, which is a nice aspect of the show as it doesn’t fixate on the ideals or depictions of just a couple of notable names.
Edwards’ awkward intentionality and personality during Everything is a Lie makes for a cynical, giggle-filled, and well-paced hour of comedy, where there is adequate time between each segment of the show to actually understand her jokes and content.
Perhaps, you may ask yourself, is still coming out of her shell or is it more of her comedic style? There’s a sense that Edwards’ is a little more reserved than the audience might expect her to be in some parts of the show, but the way in which she performs is snazzy without being over the top.
The original songs which Edwards’ performs greatly expand on each of the jokes and segments throughout the show, and contribute to the show feeling coherent and novel. She’s struck a perfect balance between the number of songs and jokes within the show, and both parts of the show will have you bopping and laughing along the way.
There’s one part of the show in which it pays to be seated up closer to the front to see what’s going on, which are the commonalities between Seaworld and the Bermuda Triangle. If you want to find out what this is, then you’ll have to definitely come along to the show.
Edwards’ has put together a truly relatable and hand-to-heart giggle-filled show for all of y’all experiencing an existential crisis and wanting to return to the good ol’ days of your childhood and early teens.
Everything is a Lie will be your jam if you’re looking for an hour of power filled with subdued rage and ranting, sassy cabaret, and a plethora of millennial references which will have you falling out of your seat for more.
Rating: ★★★★1/2
Show information: Everything is a Lie – Adelaide Fringe
