‘showcased their expertise and talent with an array of characterisations ranging from the absurd to the downright funny’
Performing as part of Unity Theatre’s Up Next Festival – which is designed as a platform for local artists to bring work in progress pieces to the stage – Knickerbocker Glory is written by and stars Aidan Rivers and Laura Robinson who between them portray eleven characters in a series of predominantly two-hander sketches.
Originally written for screen, this is its stage debut, with an emphasis on everyday life, it reflects an observational comedy approach designed to focus on the humorous behaviour of people going about their normal day to day routine, and to an extent it works.
Rivers and Robertson are recent LIPA graduates, and they showcased their expertise and talent with an array of characterisations ranging from the absurd to the downright funny with good deployment of consistent regional accents.
The staging was simple and quickly adaptable, and they covered each other well to allow for off-stage character/costume changes which were seamless and demonstrated their appreciation of theatre and the performance space.
Advertised at a duration of one hour, it actually ran for eighty minutes, and I noticed at least one person leaving – a fellow reviewer no less – before the end as a result.
The skits were amusing but I’m not sure we encountered anything that hasn’t been done before in one guise or another, and whilst this was well delivered, there needs to be something more. The sketches were fairly stereotypical and need greater depth if they’re going to fly beyond being an assortment of clever one-liners.
The biggest hurdle was the audience: it’s great to see Studio 2 being sold out but these were predominantly family and friends of the creative duo so whilst supportive, they were often laughing too quickly and too easily.
In some instances, audience members were reacting before punchlines were delivered which makes me wonder how much of the material has been presented previously – perhaps as students – because there was clearly a familiarity with some characters and material.
I would encourage Rivers and Robertson to pursue a tougher and unfamiliar audience to test their material on and whose reactions they are going to have to respond to in the moment – which I am confident they are more than adept at doing – that will go a long way to tightening up the writing as well as the delivery.
In the long run, stepping outside of their comfort zone will allow them to realise their potential and show what they can really do: based on what I’ve seen so far, I’m quietly confident that it will be very good.
Review Date: 28th March 2026
Star Rating: THREE