★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
Rosie's intelligent debut is cheeky, charming and devilishly dark.
With so many great newcomers performing at this year's Edinburgh Festival Fringe, deciding on a winner for Best Newcomer is going to be near on impossible.
Amongst those deserving of a nomination is Rosie Jones whose hilarious debut hour is full of unlikely punchlines, beautifully uncomfortable audience interactions and honest accounts of her disability.
Rosie has cerebral palsy and explains how the show is called 15 Minutes because she's only written 15 minutes worth of material, but with her voice it'll take an hour. She uses her disabilioty to her advantage as her slow delivery allows her to misdirect an audience.
Just when they think they know where a joke is going, Rosie takes it somewhere different and usually un-politically correct. Even when whole stories are repeated, Rosie changes subtle details that leaves the audience in stitches and keeps them on their toes.
Revelling in making awkward situations more awkward, Rosie encourages audience interaction which if parts were filmed and taken out of context, could be seen as a hate crime. Whilst initially awkward, Rosie's cheeky smile and mischievous nature very quickly puts you at ease.
We're also introduced to another Rosie, the Rosie whose shoulder didn't get stuck at birth and didn't stop breathing for 15 minutes and hasn't got cerebral palsy. But is she nicer than the Rosie Jones in front of us?
Rosie's intelligent debut is cheeky, charming and devilishly dark. The hour is well-written and beautifully structured and Rosie's mischievous personality shines through, and you're left feeling like you've just made a best friend.
Rosie Jones: 15 Minutes runs until 26th August at 8:30pm at the Pleasance Courtyard (Pleasance This). Book tickets here.
(This review was based on the performance from Saturday 18th August 2018)