From a performer who taps into Lynchian surrealism to a comedian who performs without pants, this year’s comedy festival is in full swing. Keep an eye on our ever-growing list of reviews here. Alice Tovey | Glass Houses Storyville, until April 6 Alice Tovey’s father went to jail, she tells us with a Judith Lucy-esque cadence.
He was more a white-collar criminal than a member of The Carlton Crew, but that’s not the point. Glass Houses is on at Storyville until April 6. Glass Houses is as much a vicious critique of the grossly mishandled prison-industrial complex as it is a reminder of the importance of familial love, empathy and forgiveness – as flawed and dysfunctional as those dearest to us may be.
As she recalls visiting prisons of varying security levels, Tovey dispels myths and offers insights into the humans others prefer to ignore. She details the communities built by hardened criminals inside unbreakable walls and how her father was subjected to literal torture that broke the UN’s Mandela Rules . There are instances where deploying a red pen would have enhanced the hour.
Tales of her father’s bathroom habits when not in the clink, her colonoscopy experiences, and a hypothetical feline-fronted fast-food franchise are unnecessary for cheaper laughs. But they are quickly forgiven as she reaches poignant crescendo after crescendo. Through stand-up and song, Tovey’s shows have often seesawed from the silly and absurd ( Doggo , Not Like The Other Ghouls ) to th.
