I am awful at lying to people. And at spotting when people are lying to me.
Clearly my night of sleuthing at Perfect Liars Club was never going to change things.
It’s a relatively new monthly event at Good Heavens in Shimokitazawa, a British bar and comedy spot. As soon as ‘It’s A Sin’ started playing, I knew I was in good company. The cosy atmosphere is lovely if you’re feeling homesick, and they made me the strongest Screwdriver I’ve ever drunk in my life. (Thanks!)
Here’s how Perfect Liars Club works. Four ‘suspects’ come up one by one, to tell a personal story bordering on unbelievable. They’re all so outlandish they couldn’t possibly be true, but told in a disarmingly convincing way.
Three of the suspects are, in fact, telling you the truth. One is lying their flame-grilled pants off. And you – and the rest of the audience – have to try and work out who that is.
In the second half, audience members get to interrogate the suspects for clues. Assuming you can remember the details of what everyone said. The interval gives you just enough time to get another drink… and to forget all four stories.
It’s beautifully simple and dangerously easy to enjoy.
Perfect Liars Club is often compared to Would I Lie To You?, but it’s just as entertaining without a glut of celebrity guests.
I say that. One of our suspects was the director of Billy Elliot: The Musical. And the month before, they’d had the British ambassador to Japan. For a show that’s only been in Tokyo since October, it draws a damn good crowd.
It’s easy to see the appeal. You will doubt everything and suspect everyone. I quickly got caught up in the finger-pointing and whispering. While people around me picked stories apart, I was Googling truck models and the geography of Tanzania.
You don’t get a huge amount of time to try and spot the liar. After the questions, we had just two minutes to make up our minds. Don’t they know that I panic at times like this? (Yeah, that’s probably the point.)
“Well, in any case, I’m pretty sure that guy’s telling the truth.”
Is what I said, about 30 seconds before we found out he was the liar. Oops.
The people who’d guessed right – not many, reassuringly – made smug faces. I facepalmed hard. And then blamed the person next to me. Why oh why hadn’t I asked that question about Fruits Basket?
There are monthly shows in Tokyo and Washington DC, which I’m aware most of you won’t be seeing in a hurry. If Perfect Liars Club ever makes the jump to London (or another UK city), don’t miss it.
