Jo Caulfield is not at the Fringe to be one of those nice, warm, endearing comics, she is a self-proclaimed “horrible” woman whose cynicism and schadenfreude form the basis of most of her comedy. She views the world with a scathing wit, and no one is free from her caustic gaze. From jokes about the boredom and inertia of middle-aged parties to crossword battles on Aberdeen-bound trains, Caulfield can take innocuous seeming situations and turn them into blackly funny riots.
Although her show mostly concerns the trials and tribulations of growing older and middle age, that doesn’t mean there’s nothing to enjoy about her work for the younger generations. Some of her jokes, including an aside about JK Rowling feels tailor-made for a Tik Tok crowd. Her sense of momentum is also unshakable, and she’ll rattle off absurd anecdotes and biting quips at a scarcely believable pace. She’s not afraid to venture into the lewd and absurd, either, and asides about threesomes and pornography will have you in stitches as much as it will leave you slightly bewildered.
It’s hard not to be in awe of Caulfield’s razor-sharp wit and acerbic observations, but when you pull back slightly, some of her material doesn’t seem to be the most original. An extended aside comparing the conversational sensibilities of men and women feels like well worn territory, and it feels like you’ve heard that exact joke a number of times already. However, it is impossible to deny Caulfield’s razor-sharp observations, and her quick wits are matched by very few.
Jo Caulfield: Pearls Before Swine, 19.10, The Stand, until August 25
https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/jo-caulfield-pearls-before-swine
