Torsten The Bareback Saint

★★★★
theatre review (edinburgh) | Read in About 2 minutes
Published 17 Aug 2014

Don't be fooled by this show's place in the theatre section of the Fringe programme. It's a concert from Erasure frontman Andy Bell in all but name and, while there's a strong theatrical element to the man's performance, it's doubtful that those who provide this evening's standing ovation are responding to the evocative archive footage used to illustrate the themes of each track. Nor are they likely expressing their appreciation for the multiple costume changes he undergoes over the course of this song cycle, however striking and beautiful they may be. We rise to our feet in excitement because Bell has an incredible voice and knows his way around an emotive pop belter like few others.

Following a loose narrative, Torsten the Bareback Saint introduces us to its titular protagonist at a young age, questioning the moral integrity of his school teachers and the notions of conformity that such institutions promote. “Freshly buggered, he made it into school the next day,” Bell begins, a mortar board resting atop his head. Later, the character finds himself dreaming of glamour and stardom while working in a bingo hall. Having come to the realisation that “the unloved and the ugly do matter,” the "trainee pervert" assumes a position of status within the hedonistic underbelly of urban Britain. It's at this point that the story's trajectory becomes incoherent and cloudy, writer Barney Ashton's compelling songs coming off as seedy vignettes which brilliantly compliment but tend not to interact with each other.