Although this isn’t his kid’s show, Olaf Falafel is a whirlwind of wholesome joy as he asks the question we’ve surely all been thinking for years. He rattles off pun after pun in between a catalogue of absurdities as hilarious as they are immature. Your inner child will come to the fore as his rampant enthusiasm and affability shatters all defences. However, despite all the childlike awe and wonder, his one-liners are sneakily clever, and it can catch you off guard how potent some of them can be.
There are an alarming number of jokes and gags about excrement in this show, however, and they can become tiresome quite quickly – especially when one, involving the game battleships, drags on after the joke has already been exhausted. He keeps you engaged throughout, however, and his facial expressions combined with a joyous cadence allow him to generate laughs even when he ventures into dad humour territory; and dad jokes there are, but even as you roll your eyes, you won’t be able to deny the sheer charm he tell them with.
There’s also clever use of a slideshow and art – which are used for elements of his crowd work or to highlight something Falafel says. One gag about a sausage bird feels like a YouTube prank video airlifted into the middle of a standup set; it’s very funny, but it takes up too much space and the joke loses its lustre after a while. However, for wholesome fun and rapid-fire puns, there are few who can match Olaf Falafel at this year’s Fringe.
Olaf Falafel: Has Anyone Ever Actually Woven a Sigourney?, 15.45, Laughing Horse @ The Pear Tree, until August 25
https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/olaf-falafel-asks-has-anyone-ever-actually-woven-a-sigourney
