FRINGE REVIEW: Boys Taste Better with Nutella is a Real Treat
Boys Taste Better with Nutella is a delightful two-hander created and presented by the Brisbane-based Backyard Theatre Collective. It charts the tragic (but still comic) ups and downs of relationships, loneliness and belonging through the characters of Aggy and Frederick. Aggy is always in the wrong relationships with the wrong, manipulative and selfish, guys and, to console herself, she downs entire tubs of Nutella. Frederick is the lonely target of internet trolls who consoles himself with his favourite food: chips. It could so easily become a downer but the performers and creative team tackle all of this with wonderfully witty writing and hilariously cheesy dance moves.
The two performers, Caitlin Hill and Peter Wood, have great comic timing and stage presence: they’re engaging but not overwhelming, energetic and playful with both each other and the audience. There is just the right amount of audience participation; Frederick got several random audience members to hold his computer while Aggy roped a blue-collar guy in the third row into being her next boyfriend.
Hill and Wood even manage to transform the small stage at Lazy Susan’s into a myriad of different spaces. It gets pretty messy; there is a lot of Nutella involved and some sort of rain of chips. This is a fun and silly show with plenty of laughs to keep you interested throughout its fifty minutes.
Through all its jokes and ridiculous storytelling methods, Boys Taste Better with Nutella does tackle some important topics in a playful way. From abusive relationships to homophobia, misogyny and the rising epidemic of loneliness in young people, these characters lives sometimes felt like my own and a lot of other young people I know. And I think that’s why this show works so well.
4 out of 5 Stars
Boys Taste Better with Nutella play their final show tonight, Sunday 3rd Feb, at Lazy Susan’s comedy den on Beaufort St. Go see it before they leave town!
