“And together we are . . . Sam”
Note: This review is based on a recorded performance
Sam & ___ has quite the interesting concept for a comedy show. Audiences are expecting to see the famous duo Gaz and Sam perform some of their iconic sketches in Gaz and Sam: Trouble in Paraguay, but, for some reason, Gaz is still ten minutes away from the venue. With one billion pounds of overrun fees from the venue on the line, it’s up to Sam to put on a two-man show by himself, facing the audience alone.
Written and performed by Sam Walls of Bad Clowns (with assistance from Johanna Dart), the show begins with quite a bit of clowning, as Sam decides to put on the rehearsed sketches alone, leaving blank space for where Gaz should be. As one might expect, this leads to many moments of purposefully awkward silence, jokes without either the setup or the punchline, and even some egg juggling (it goes just about as well as one imagines it will).
After a few minutes of Sam attempting to replicate the double act bits, one has to wonder – is this all that Sam & ___ is going to be? Fear not – there’s more to this show than meets the eye. Even though Sam began the show by singing Gaz’s praises, promising that his friend would never let him down, the cracks in the seemingly perfect friendship begin to show. Somehow, Gaz is always still ten minutes away from the venue, but he refuses to let Sam perform without him, apparently shouting at him over the phone. The more that is revealed about Sam and Gaz’s relationship, the more one begins to question just how healthy the pair are together.
In what appears to be an act of rebellion, Sam makes the decision to ignore Gaz, instead turning to the audience for help to finish the show. The audience becomes Sam’s partner, taking on the role of Gaz in multiple ways, whether it’s by making sound effects that would’ve been on Gaz’s phone or even coming on stage and taking Gaz’s spot, script in hand. Walls does a great job of working with the audience he has, being unafraid to make fun of them for failing to live up to expectations when it comes to interactive moments, yet still cheering them on. Even though he claims that he’s “holding control of this show by f*cking dental floss,” Walls certainly appears to have a strong handle on the situation.
Ultimately, Sam & ___ is a silly yet slightly sobering look at not only the role that comedy can play in one’s life, but also how relationships can be affected by performance. Walls give a fantastic solo performance, able to turn the audience into his comedic partner by breaking down the fourth wall – even if it does make him question his own role as a performer.
Sam & ___ runs on 10 July at the Museum of Comedy. For more information and to purchase tickets, click here.
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