I'm Almost There

Good god it's good...

Brilliant. It is a chamber musical- only 3 performers, 2 of whom are primarily musicians, leaving this essentially a one-man storytelling event- but if you go in knowing that you’ll only be blown away. This epic poem set to song applies the Odyssey to a modern queer setting in a moving and powerful way.

An incredibly beautiful show, with gorgeous music and singing that elevate the storytelling to the sublime. I felt gut punched in my humanity, and I mean that in the best possible way.

This is a very niche reference but this very much felt like if ‘Rusty Lake’ (the video game franchise) was made into a musical! It was really surreal but I was completely immersed by this show and only when it was over was I like “I think I liked that?” Then over the next few days I found I just kept on thinking about it and inevitably came to the conclusion that I loved it! The music and lyrics were gorgeous with just the right amount of humour popping up at often unexpected times! I’m so glad I caught this show!

I was totally seduced by Todd's charm and voice. This is Story Telling in a new, wonderful musical format. The main character in this tall tale is easily distracted; he meets people and his imagination takes him to all sorts of places. Throughout, Todd's main character remains a helpful, gentle man searching for the right person to befriend and "love" on this wacky NYC stage which he inhabits with the help of comedy and wonderful music. I was there. I was transfixed and in the moment. The show is great! Great performers.

Upon reading the decent reviews below I was flooded with the feeling I got when I learnt that trump got in and brexit was real; you feel at complete odds with the rest of the world. Completely at sea. This show was dull, unfunny and unsurprising. Life is short. This made it considerably shorter. I wish I could’ve jumped out the window with the cat.

One of the most beautiful and engaging pieces of theatre I’ve ever seen at the Fringe. Would highly recommend.

Beautiful, beautiful show. Funny and thoughtful, full of a beautiful delivery. A kind of Odyssey towards finding love, first having to deal with yourself and all the reasons you resist it… I found the "walking for 40 years" metaphor to be one of the most beautiful I've heard to describe love and life partnership, thank you for introducing it into my life.

I am struggling to understand why a few of the reviews here are grudging.. we loved this show, in all its parts. Starting with Todd's singing voice, which is simply superb and one could listen to it all day long. He plays the piano with an ease that defies his expertise. The story telling is wonderfully bizarre, a sort of stream of consciousness; it has a beginning, lots of middles and an end, quite Garrison Keilloresque. If we had a gap in our schedule we would gladly see it again.

The content and to some extent the delivery of this surreal vignette reminded me of the opening stanzas of Michael Frank’s “Monk’s new tune”:

Before I was saved by my better half
I once disappeared in a black-and-white photograph
That I was just staring at, framed on someone's wall
How long it lasted, I could not say
But all of my heroes returned to play one last gig
And there was I, in the middle of it all.

I see Todd Almond is advertised as a New York favourite and you can see how his good looks and easy, humorous style work a treat in cabaret format. To that extent it seemed a bit odd to be watching it early afternoon, but that’s Fringe for you.

Quirky but delightful, and all 3 participants seemed comfortable swapping instruments.

Cool.

I thought this was great: sort of like a Will Eno-esque monologue with (excellent) music, winning performances from a cast of three, and sensitive direction by David Cromer (who's one of the USA's best directors). The plot is vaguely Odyssean, with a gay guy simply trying to descend a flight of stairs to meet a waiting friend/love-interest -- and everything goes wrong. It's sophisticated and weird and one of the highlights of my Fringe this year.

This is a good show for people who like essays. It picks up a subject, meanders far away from it on some really interesting tangent, then bolts back again like a whiplash... which adds to the humor. It all feels sorta real, life viewed from a snowglobe. The audience was totally into it, and I mostly was too.

Don’t be misled by the poster which suggests a dynamic piece of madcap theatre. This is probably the most static show since ‘Happy Days’ but none of Beckett’s brilliance. It’s essentially a (good quality) concert involving 3 accomplished musicians interspersed with a meandering tale of unfulfilled desire that seemingly goes absolutely nowhere. Maybe that was the point. Was well received by many who were there but…

Utterly brilliantly conceived and delivered. Loved every minute.

Go in expecting a series of disjoint songs. The show, like the songs, had no overarching story, structure, or purpose. I didn't understand it or its popularity.

Really enjoyed this modern fairytale with fun, well delivered and nicely constructed songs. Moments in the music reminded me of R.E.M. and Sufjan Stevens. Sweet, light charming.