Assembly George Square Studios

5^th– 16^th

August £19

18.30

Who, indeed, is Torsten? We are introduced to this tragic character and his grossly elongated and broken life as he explodes onstage, breaking into dramatic, theatrical monologue, to uncover the black sadness of the transience of true love he has long endured. His rich, lyrical prose and powerful lingering notes hang by the throat like some bizarre sex game, whilst he relaxes, elegant, camp and defiant, smoking in an Elvis armchair and dinner suit and begins to unfold his tale.

Effortless and oozing skilled, professional stage presence, all-too-obviously gained from his charismatic ‘Pop’ years, Andy Bell portrays his alter-ego, backed by choice retro film projections and accompanied by keyboards n sax, which add without distraction from his enigmatic presence.

He unfolds his story with each song covering another broken, black chapter of a troubled, seedy & colourful life, but which is punctuated with glittery, sparkling camp humour. Cold, cheap sex, emotional abuse and superficial party whores flavour and colour each song in a riot of sensory overload as they are intensely ejaculated over the eager audience one after another in a seemingly endless stream – with little time to bask in the satisfaction and glory of the previous. His poetic, powerful prose carried by an undoubtedly superb vocal range deliver a breath-taking punch to the gut as his dark story unfolds.

‘Songs are postcards from the hotspots of memory’

An unashamed display of love, heartbreak and the bleakness and futility of transient love and life. FOUR STARS

Reviewer : Teri Welsh