Perhaps it's because YouTube comedy clips have eroded the attention span of an entire generation, but a lot of stand-ups these days go for the instant gratification of rapid-fire gags rather than shape a single story over several minutes.
Tom Shillue - something of a name on the New York circuit in particular but a newcomer to the UK - is a rock-solid storyteller who'll set up a number of good jokes along the way, knowing full well that it's the cumulative effect of his tales that leave the lasting impact. This Fringe debut is effectively an introduction to who he is, where he came from and why he does this for a living. But even as he observes his childhood in suburbia and college years in the big city from afar, he's using personal details to make bigger points about prevailing attitudes in the 1970s and 1980s. A master craftsman is in the building.
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