A review of Rachel Parris: Work in Progress, Fringe 2023

Should you review a Work in Progress? Evidently, I’ve gone with “Yes”.

Against the decision to do so is the fact that the gig will change night-on-night as the talented Rachel Parris tests different material, or the same material differently and that the show isn’t finished. You wouldn’t review Christmas dinner while it was still cooking.

However, improv routines differ each night and are still subject to (hopefully benefit from) reviews. Rachel Parris is charging a ticket price for the show and the clincher, it’s a great show, so it’s a positive review.

Rachel Parris starts by acknowledging that some in the audience might only know her from the Mash Report. That’s certainly how I discovered her, but her comedy appealed to me, as does her dangerously sharp insight, so I raced to get tickets.

From Rachel, we hear about her plan to conquer the Mash Report and get it cancelled and how she’s totally over Brexit now. She lies.

There’s singing, politics and the search for a title (and some ends to stories). My suggestion for a title would be – no, wait; this is an annoyance men do. My advice has not been solicited, and in my re-read before publication, I’m putting this note of contrition in instead.

What to expect

There was more singing than I expected! Parris is a dab hand at the keyboard, and my 2023 streak of picking music and comedy continues, albeit by accident this time.

Warning; there’s audience participation and music! Fortunately, no one has to solo anything, and it’s easy to skive. This year I’ve even complained in a review when I was told the sing-along would be easy when I promptly got lost. In what I suspect is typical Rachel Parris empathy, this time, we’re told that sing-alongs are never easy. I knew it! It’s not just me.

Expect feminism. We need more of it, and Rachel has some to spare. That said, women are all different (there’s a song), and there are some that Rachel feels limited empathy with. We don’t go near Scotland’s TERF problems and take a more lighthearted approach to discussing feminism.

The fact that this is a work in progress is full-on and upfront. There are several times when Rachel has a witty anecdote, wins the audience’s attention and then lets us go with an “I don’t have an ending for that yet”.

Vibe and performance

Rachel Parris’ obvious intelligence always has me on a hook. I learn from this woman; her words help me make better decisions. That’s powerful stuff!

Work In Progress is clearly unfished! D’uh. I’m still sad that this wasn’t a complete gig. Is it selfish to want more? I didn’t mind when Parris re-started a song for a better key, that’s the nature of a WIP, but I’m still hungry for punchlines.

The vibe of the Work in Progress was fantastic. There’s a strong feeling of being among your people and like-minded individuals. I’m sure any random sample of people who came to the show would be an interesting addition to a pub chat, gaming night banter or work night out.

In the ongoing awfulness of British politics, it’s a delight to find your tribe.

Conclusion

Should you have hurried to buy tickets when Rachel Parris announced a short Work in Progress run at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival? Yes.

I suspect this show will evolve and mature into one about family and feminism. It’s hard to see politics providing stable material in the next few years as we head deeper into unstable times. I think Rachel Parris will be the matriarch of the revolu-wisdom.

P.S. Rachel’s Advice from Strangers: Everything I know from people I don’t know came out last year.