Review

Skitch Tease – Edinburgh Fringe 2011, 4–29 August, C aquila.

Review by Thom Dibdin, The Stage, Thursday 25 August 2011.

Skitch Tease

Hilarious songs, involving comedy and a cabaret turn to die for, make Liz Skitch’s hour pass in flash. Her burlesque-style routine is the big selling point, but she has depth in both delivery and material.

Famously, the Australian actress and comedian is the naked accordionist. Skitch performs without a stitch – not counting stockings, high-heeled shoes and, in the best striptease tradition, her hat. Not even pasties – which, once her raunchy but always discreet strip is out of the way and she is safely seated with the accordion protecting her modesty, is grounds for much merry banter about nipple cripples.

And merry banter is what Skitch is all about. It is a lovely hour of cabaret fun that draws on comedy as much as music. Indeed, her squeeze box skills on display are basic – quite adequate, but there is nothing flash in that department. The flashy bit is in the words to the songs and their delivery – the tongue-in-cheek asides, the knowing looks and the lovingly drawn-out innuendo.

It is, however, the whole package that makes the show work. Knowing that Skitch is nude behind her instrument gives an edge to her comic material. And the whole package makes her a hit with both trendy mums out with their teenage daughters and drunk lads out for some fun.

Back to Skitch Tease show page