The line between surrealism and stupidity is seldom so blurred as when Mark Forward performs. The award-winning comedian's new hour of standup, Mark Forward Wins All the Awards — bearing more resemblance to the off-Broadway one-man-show of a childlike maniac — reaches a height of parody, ingenuity and hilarity that is perhaps new for the accomplished Canadian comic.
The alleged purpose of Mark Forward's set was to be a pensive examination of death. It is always difficult to take a comedian as unpredictable as Forward at his word when he is too forthcoming. While there was very examination of the phenomenon itself — and a decided lack of any conclusion on the subject — his set was fraught with death at every turn.
Forward's set began with some laugh-worthy jokeless politics jokes — him referencing Trump's behaviour as erratic, with the punch line being "like… cut it out" for example — while making a margarine sandwich of Scooby Doo proportions. The making of said sandwich lead to thoughts of filicide expressed in song by the voice of Beelzebub. Everything got weird from here.
There was never a dull moment in Forward's set. He was erratic, loud, mobile and above all, completely invested in his performance. In essence, Forward performed over a practically continuous roar of laughter for an hour straight while keeping his audience completely and utterly focused on his every action.
Mark Forward Wins All the Awards was a non-stop onslaught of barrelhouse laughs and insanity. You would have been lulled into the regrettable feeling of dread that comes when a brilliant show is winding down, although in typical Forward fashion, no one quite saw it coming so brilliantly… abruptly. Mark Forward has won awards for being one of the "best of the fest" before. He may have outdone himself this year.
The alleged purpose of Mark Forward's set was to be a pensive examination of death. It is always difficult to take a comedian as unpredictable as Forward at his word when he is too forthcoming. While there was very examination of the phenomenon itself — and a decided lack of any conclusion on the subject — his set was fraught with death at every turn.
Forward's set began with some laugh-worthy jokeless politics jokes — him referencing Trump's behaviour as erratic, with the punch line being "like… cut it out" for example — while making a margarine sandwich of Scooby Doo proportions. The making of said sandwich lead to thoughts of filicide expressed in song by the voice of Beelzebub. Everything got weird from here.
There was never a dull moment in Forward's set. He was erratic, loud, mobile and above all, completely invested in his performance. In essence, Forward performed over a practically continuous roar of laughter for an hour straight while keeping his audience completely and utterly focused on his every action.
Mark Forward Wins All the Awards was a non-stop onslaught of barrelhouse laughs and insanity. You would have been lulled into the regrettable feeling of dread that comes when a brilliant show is winding down, although in typical Forward fashion, no one quite saw it coming so brilliantly… abruptly. Mark Forward has won awards for being one of the "best of the fest" before. He may have outdone himself this year.
