David Elms: Mister Boy at The Pleasance Below

There is a new trend emerging amongst male comedians where they tell the crowd how happy and content they are rather than barking reasons the audience and everyone they know is wrong. It’s a refreshing change of pace. Comedy in second or third gear, cruising through material enjoying the ride rather than racing to the finish line is David Elms. His show Mister Boy is so light it floats by almost imperceptibly for an hour. Low key to the point of near silence he revels in the awkward gaps and every ‘erm’ is thoughtful and measured. He never seems uncomfortable, even if the audience aren’t completely sold at times. He’s having the best time in the room, and the feeling soon catches on.

An ongoing theme of the show is that it doesn’t have a theme; it's just one man chatting about his life with a few musical numbers, some home recordings and some audience participation. The monkey wedding is particularly well done. In the hands of other comics the constant pulling up of audience members to punctuate his flights of whimsy might grate but such is Elms’s happy-go-lucky attitude the various selected crowd members are immediately at ease. The show meanders its way to a bit of an anti-climax as Elms pulls the microphone stand toward himself and explains what a lovely time he’s had. You can’t help but feel the same.