Why Did I Crush My Balls? And Other Tales from the Generation of Too Much

Miranda Faria, one of the co-stars of this show, when flyering outside the theatre, described it as being about dating in the internet age and the numbness of scrolling and doing something as crazy as crushing your balls just to feel something. Maybe that’s what she settled on as the most hooky or user-friendly way of describing it on the fly, but I’m not sure it’s accurate: I don’t recall the internet being mentioned once in the show, and I’m not sure Aidan Dominic Roche’s lead character, he of the testicular auto-rupture (if there’s a technical term for it, I dunno what it is), commits the act of self-sabotage for that reason.

It is, though, about a young man’s frustration with his sexual life and sexual history and about a certain class of white American college grads confronting their spiritual emptiness as they enter the motions of conformist adulthood: it deals with standing outside oneself while moving through a zombielike track of life, especially not even feeling in the moment when having sex, and not knowing oneself enough to know whether you like to be dominated or subjugated (with just plain true intimacy being out of the question.) In that sense, if not exactly in the webscrolling sense, it is about being numb to feeling.

The show is frank, smart, neurotic and very specific, and it moves around deftly between the Grand Guignol of the ball-crushing (and Roche being sprayed in blood from offstage) and confrontational two-hander conversations (or sometimes four-hander conversations, with all the characters played by those two actors.) It’s a sort of zoomer answer to the likes of The Graduate and Carnal Knowledge, and both performers are attractive, funny and emotionally exploratory, particularly Roche, who shoulders most of the play in monologue and has a kind of comic intensity, and stuckness between boyhood and manhood, that brought to mind performers like Jason Biggs and Daniel Radcliffe and perhaps even a young Dustin Hoffman.

Why Did I Crush My Balls? And Other Tales from the Generation of Too Much (****)
A man seriously argues that nis need to have his balls squeezed to achieve orgasm is like any other fetish. This sounds like a premise for a zany, sex-oriented show, but it is not. While it is somewhat surreal with squirted blood pelting him, the plotting and his character are quite serious. His life’s story and interactions with his girl friend are gripping.

This is the 16th most enjoyable of the 66 shows I have seen so far at the Fringe this year. I hope to see more than 150 this year. You may see my other three-sentence reviews, in order from most enjoyable to worst, at my non-commercial website: https://fringefan.com/

Goodness me. Front row. Bang!

Gripped from the start with an incredible professionally delivered monologue. Heard things I never thought I’d hear… never mind see. The team delivered a terribly well rounded performance and I know we’ll see their faces in primetime soon.

Well! We'd just come out of a show nearby and got a flyer for 'Balls' and thought what the hell, why not? 5 minutes in I thought, what have we done? There's a guy on stage in his pants with blood running down his legs. Then it got gooood. To summarise, this performance was brilliantly written, creatively staged with minimal cast and set, but SO effective. The use of positioning and movement etc to show change of characters etc was fabulous. The acting was honestly superb throughout without fault (guy even handled a rude audience member taking a call skilfully without breaking character). And the whole thing had an unexpected depth and honesty to it that really struck. Seriously well done to all involved. We loved it.
Lynne

After the show had finished I was left at a loss for words, it was that gripping. Was it my balls that had been crushed in the end? I wonder aloud to myself as I continue to piece together the brilliant performance I had just witnessed.

The show is a tense push and pull of intensely captivating story telling with lighthearted (but not for the faint of heart) comedy. The absurdity of the scenario contrasts the performance at times leaving you uncertain of how to feel as conflicting emotions clash. It is only as the story progresses that this absurdity shifts from confusingly odd to poetically heartwrenching and thought provoking, leaving you to lay in bed, as I am now, staring at the ceiling, and recontextualizing the entire performance.

If you're looking for phenomenal acting and an unforgettable experience (maybe I'm just traumatized) then you have to see this show.

10/10

Side note: this is a very intense performance that handles heavy topics and has a lot of blood. I normally gloss over content warnings, but it's worth mentally preparing yourself for this one. That being said, I brought my Aunt and I don't think I scarred her toooooo bad (TBD).

The provocative title grabs your interest, but it's the shows delivery that holds your attention. The production blends humor with a fast paced exploration of deep thoughts and vulnerability.

The writing is sharp, with fun dialogue that keeps the audience engaged. This show is a must-see for anyone who enjoys comedy that pushes boundaries.

If you don't go see this show then you'll be the one who is bloody nuts!

Absolutely an incredible show with brilliant performances. This show takes a wild concept and creates a really unique narrative within. It’s a beautiful message disguised in a wildly funny story. It’ll keep you laughing the whole play and keep you thinking for days afterwards. 1000% recommend seeing this show. 11/10

Actually a really brilliant show. Two very genuine performances with a lovely balance of energy, weirdness, and honesty. A show that has no right being that relatable. I really think it’s a must see and I truly hope to see this play go beyond the fringe. It’s Gripping, interesting, AUTHENTIC. And wonderfully human in the strangest way. Put your phone down. Stop reading this. Go see the show.

Do not let the title scare you away. This piece of theatre tackles the themes that the iPhone generation has been needing to talk about for years. The performances are brilliant. It is both funny and heartbreaking.

Absolute masterclass in nuance and detailed acting. The two actors hold the audience in the palm of their hand the entire way through the show and there is a never a moment of dullness or awkwardness. 10/10

My favorite show I’ve seen at the fringe so far. WDICMB disguises an incredibly rich high brow commentary on sexuality and intimacy under a low brow concept that provides some of the biggest laughs I’ve heard all week.