Review: Sasha Ellen – My MILF-shake Brings all the Boys to the Yard, Fringe 2024

I saw Sasha Ellen last year and was impressed enough to want to book myself in for one of her Fringe 2024 gigs.

Sasha is a professional DM, which puts her very much on Edinburgh Review’s sister site, Geek Native’s radar, but I went to see her comedy show “MILF-shake” rather than the D&D one she also has at the Fringe this year.

Is being called a MILF a compliment? (Being called a DM is a compliment.)

In the show, Sasha essentially brings us up to date with her life, which means a flat, a boyfriend, a chair, a much younger sibling, doctors and therapists.

MILF-shake is an honest, open, and empathic show. Furthermore, on the night I went to see Sasha, I don’t think she had the best audience. It’s a familiar verbal melee challenge with guys in the back of the venue who think everyone else will consider their interruption a work of genius. Sasha hit the tone of audience banter while bringing the set back on track really well.

My MILF-shake Brings all the Boys to the Yard is performed with the occasional assistance of a presentation deck. PowerPoint. This means Sasha stands behind a laptop in front of what I suspect is a backing screen for Twitch streaming, with a projector to broadcast slides onto the screen. This means we can read the evidence in question as Sasha unpacks reports that have been written to her and see the weird emails she gets. It makes a surprising difference, adding yet another level of impact to the storytelling.

Tone

Sasha Ellen looks innocent, and she makes this point herself, but there’s undoubtedly a wickedly adult streak to the comedy routine.

It’s a 16+ rated show, and that’s harsh for the adultness of the comedy and likely due to the Cabaret Voltaire venue. One note, possibly a downvote, is that Voltaire is so bloomin’ central and can accommodate so many shows the bar people have to gather in before the sets start getting incredibly busy.

I like Sasha’s storytelling, as it comes across as sincere and heartfelt. Throughout the act she’ll, she talks about mental health, about suffering from anxiety, and it feels very real. That’s not to suggest Sasha stutters, mumbles or cowers in the spotlight, but it does create this weird oxymoronic performance where, with confidence, she talks about being anxious.

The stories Sasha tells also feel very real. They’re about running low on loo paper, about keeping the flat clean and getting on friends and family.

What to expect

MILF-shake is a stand-up routine. It’s a slice-of-life observational, and while Sasha is the central character, there’s no story arc as much. It’s a conversation.

As much as I’ve warned a little about Cabaret Voltaire, I think it’s a pretty good venue for MILF-shake because it’s pretty hip location and not too far from the beaten track. Audiences are probably more familiar with the idea of chatting up MILFs at a nightclub or cuck-chairs at Voltaire than they are with Challenge Ratings.

There’s a little audience interaction, even by design, as Sasha want to engage with people in the room but I suspect on normal days its straightforward with the chance to call out answers to proposed questions.

Expect to be smiled at.

Overall

Of the two Sasha Ellen shows at the Fringe this year, even as a D&D player, I think I went to the right one.

I wanted the cleverness of a comedian, someone who’d examined life and spotted the quirky stuff worthy of being highlighted as funny. That’s what I got.

I think Sasha should have a little band of loyal Fringe-bound gamers who come to see her shows. If that could be you, then go.

I also think “My MILF-shake Brings all the Boys to the Yard” is the sort of show that anyone out in town with their friends who fancy seeing some slice-of-life comedy can rock up to and enjoy.