Judas Exclusive | Studio at Zoo Southside (Ed Fringe)

Judas Iscariot, one of history’s most famous betrayers, finally gets a chance to tell his side of the story in an exclusive tell-all interview on the once popular talk show, Simona Tonight. Together with the show’s lost-fame-chasing host they’ll discuss the lads, the love and the burning questions: just what was served at the last supper?

The play is both a love letter to and a lament for broadcast tv, relentless with its jabs at late night talk shows while cutting away to parodies of perennial pleasers like A Place in the Sun. Traditional news’ role as a governmental mouthpiece and the rise of extremist views in media are especially criticised, the script not even trying to hide its disdain when these are brought up.

Simona (Beth Mullen) and Judas (Nicholas Alexander) both play their (multiple) roles well, Simona especially balancing wine-sodden and sympathetic throughout the play’s 55-minute-long runtime. Due to the pressures that come with preview shows, there were a few breaks and lines that took a couple of tries, but nothing that pulled the audience completely out. Writer/Producer Will McDowell has a smaller role as Peter the Disciple, offering a more saintly contrast to Judas and several more avenues to show how TV will warp a story whichever way gets them views.

Despite all the sharp points and clever twists, the production sometimes felt like it was wrapped in a layer of itchy wool: there’s great moments, but there’s also a lot that could have been cut out. The constant cut-aways to other shows, while funny, reset the audience and dampen what should be a rising tension throughout the show. Some of the more dramatic lines also lacked strength behind them, whether undercut by casual phrases or the delivery falling a bit shallow. In summary, the shows blend of topics and commentary make for an interesting watch, even if you do need to cut through the wax to get to the cheese.

Judas Exclusive plays at Studio at Zoo Southside at 19:10 until 28th August - tickets and more information can be found here.

★★★☆☆ (3*)

Gifted tickets in return for an honest review