The power of pointlessness

Will Adamsdale's oddball comedy character was a shock Perrier Award winner

In 2003 unknown actor Will Adamsdale created quietly demented life coach Chris John Jackson at a Battersea Arts Centre scratch session. Last August his oddball comedy character was a shock Perrier Award winner. This homecoming confirms that the success is deserved, even if his oblique creation is an acquired taste.

The victorious Edinburgh run was intended as a work-inprogress, but this polished update is not significantly retooled. There's some added jaunty gipsy music as the boyish Adamsdale bounds on and a video screen, which is largely superfluous. At one point last night it stalled and no one really noticed.

What survives still brilliantly subverts the innate absurdity of the snake-oil lubricated motivational lecturer. As our host's meaning-free patter says: "Jackson's Way is ... a way." His basic schtick is that we can improve ourselves by concentrating on pointlessness. Why not swap around some litter or throw towels in the air? A back-story about sibling brutality remains an enigmatic subtext.

Instead, Adamsdale crisply drives his babble towards audaciously silly set-pieces with tinges of interactive performance art. One fan is forced to stare upwards, while another is persuaded to exit temporarily. Finally detritus fills the stage as if Tracey Emin was set designer.

Cynics have said that Jackson's Way's triumph is the ultimate comedic example of The Emperor's New Clothes. It might indeed be a show about nothing, but it is a densely textured show about nothing. Deliciously funny too, if you have a penchant for the utterly pointless.

Until 6 May. Information: 020 7223 2223.

Jackson's Way

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in