The day I saw Okay Get Home Safe!! it was the second show based on true crime programmes. Sometimes subjects are in the ether and some years of the festival have a few shows centred on the same subjects. I blame myself for scheduling two shows on the same subject for the same day, but I praise Anna Drezen for having developed her show in such a unique way, that it didn’t really seem like a show on an already discussed subject.
The show starts with real life footage of Ted Bundy’s trial and vox pop interviews with young women present in the hearings. It’s scary how they approach the murder of several young women nonchalantly, but it’s strangely also very funny, leading the audience to laughter from even before stepping on stage.
Drezen doesn’t want this to be yet another big emotional Edinburgh Fringe show, she deals with her issues in therapy. It’s hard to get away from it though, and she uses tools from the podcast format to schedule well-timed breaks into her narrative. The made-up ad breaks are hilarious and they’re done in such a way that the show never loses its rhythm.
There was a wall of older audience members on the first row, to whom I’m guessing the podcast parallel was lost on, that made it difficult for Anna to connect with the audience from the start, but as soon as she brought out the big guns – and by that I mean the bit about boobs and bras – she got even the most lifeless audience member to join in on the fun!
★★★★
Anna Drezen: Okay Get Home Safe!! is at Pleasance Courtyard at 16:30 until 25th August. For tickets and more information click here!
Funny Women are at the Edinburgh Fringe with five shows, from 19th – 23rd August, a Funny Women Awards 2019 semi-final, a Stand Up to Stand Out workshop and a Meet Up. Come find us!
There’s still time to nominate a women-led show for the 2019 Funny Women Awards’ Best Show Category! The show with the most nominations will be picked! Nominate a show you have seen or your own show by 31st August here!
