Settling into my familiar seat in the Pleasance Grand, 70 minutes of pure entertainment magic awaited as 750 excited viewers took their seats in anticipation. Having seen this show before many times, Showstoppers is one I make sure to catch each year at the fringe, as it is yet to disappoint.
The story of this particular, audience-inspired night involved 5 people stuck in a lift, a limiting setting for lesser improv artists but one that the performers on stage took in their stride. Involving music in the style of Cats, Six and, the ever present in the crowd suggestions at Showstoppers, Guys N’ Dolls.
Immediately setting the tone and clearly identifying fleshed out characters is what instantly impresses in the first few moments after the actors fling themselves into each one-off project. The incredibly astute understanding of Musical Theatre and song structure is what the audience can’t help but boundlessly applaud next. Each song sounds different and unique, with help from the incredible 3 piece band that managed to impressively overcome some technical issues right before the show started. The swiftness with which each performer manages to find elegant harmonies, remember lyrics from a chorus that they each take turns in writing on the spot, and magically making choreography or movement that fits each brief perfectly just shows how incredibly comfortable and used to each other the actors are, and how each one is a master of the Musical Theatre art form.
Whether it be slightly pitchy (yet quickly resolved) harmonies, not coming up with rhyming words quick enough, or not being able to remember each character’s names, each small and infrequent “mistake” only adds to the brilliance on stage and the side-aching comedy that is achieved with impressive fervour.
Even though this may have been my umpteenth time seeing this fantastic and everchanging show, once again the brilliant minds behind Showstoppers manage to keep delivering laugh upon laugh while creating on-the-spot characters that are deep enough for the audience to really sink their teeth into. If they haven’t already, Showstoppers has cemented itself as a juggernaut that is not to be missed every single year at the Edinburgh Fringe.
https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/showstopper-the-improvised-musical
Theatre Scotland 
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