Chelsea Birkby has decided to reinvent herself, despite this being her festival debut. After critics described her as an innocent, kind-hearted comedian, which was supposed to be complimentary. Nonetheless, she has taken offence to this, and so she is here to show that she is an off-beat, edgy, foul-mouthed girl boss. Well, kind of.
“No More Mr Nice Chelsea” is all about Chelsea’s upbringing, and how it affected her outlook on life. She grew up with conflicting ideas of the type of person she was supposed to be, which led her down some dark paths, whilst this is troubling for her, it has provided her with the material she needs to be this new kind of comedian. The show is brilliantly funny, and Chelsea Birkby has the material and demeanour of a comedian who could make it all the way to the top.
There are plenty of comedians who use their own lives as the basis of their shows, and when they are talking about depressing topics, there is a fine line between what’s funny and what just sounds like complaining. This show is able to walk that line perfectly, Chelsea approaches some of the worst points of her life with self-deprecating yet upbeat humour, and the optimistic way in which she speaks about her life as it is right now gives the show some uplifting moments to take with the bad. The style of the show makes it feel as though Chelsea is determined to show her tough, edgy side, while also being polite and kind enough to guide the audience through the show’s low points with some positivity. The two perfectly compliment each other, and her new comedic style has been established as a sort of polite rock star. It’s certainly unusual, but it’s hilarious.
Chelsea Birkby: No More Mr Nice Chelsea, 15:40, Just The Tonic, August 21-28
https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/chelsea-birkby-no-more-mr-nice-chelsea
