As we mentioned in our previous review, this show was the second half of an incredible back-to-back booking with Pierre Novellie. With Monkey Barrel 3 buzzing (we weren’t the only ones who thought the double-up would be epic), Larry Dean took to the stage…

This show is a wild ride through our clown’s life, revealing his newly diagnosed autism and his slight obsession with gurning and contortion. He justifies his charming habit of greeting everyone at the door before the show by suggesting, “it gets you used to my face.“

Dean spends much of the show delving into his relationship with his beloved ‘nanny’, who passed away at 98. Her dementia led to some darkly funny moments, like not recognizing Dean as her grandson and flirting with his boyfriend, proving they had similar taste in men.

The love is obvious in every gag, and the narrative gains additional weight when he touches on his complicated relationship with his mother, shedding light on her mental health struggles and how they clashed during his teenage years. Autism might be a well-trodden theme now, but Dean suggests it can often resemble trauma.

Physical comedy is Dean’s strength, with bits on nationalities, his Catholic upbringing, and his attempts at self-deprecating humour in the US – where he found Americans more concerned for his state of mind than amused. Larry’s (genuinely lovely-sounding) Brummie boyfriend, Mikey, also gets his own physical caricature, depicted here as a deflating balloon in our clown’s cartoonish style.

And when Dean decides to unleash the chaos within, he locks eyes with someone in the front row and breaks out his split-personality ‘Hyde’ persona, complete with an appropriately creepy physical transformation. The final gag from this front-row interaction is both incredibly childish and hilarious.

Despite the heavy themes, “Dodger” is a thoroughly enjoyable watch, with Dean’s perfect balance of physical and anecdotal comedy making it a must-see.

Larry Dean is on tour for the rest of 2024, and you can find details of all his upcoming shows here

Clown Stars: * * * * *

@Monkey Barrel, Edinburgh