ED FRINGE 2023 Review | Shamilton - Baby Wants Candy
★ ★ ★ ★
Reviewer - Jacqueline
Following huge success at the 2022 Edinburgh Fringe, comedy group Baby Wants Candy are back and better than ever. The premise of Shamilton is simple: tell the story of a well-known cultural figure using hip-hip music, just like Lin-Manuel Miranda did with Alexander Hamilton. The catch? The show is fully improvised and based entirely on audience suggestion.
As no two performances of Shamilton can ever be the same, let me take you on a journey through my experience. As the show began, the packed house were asked to shout out some names of influential figures. We ended up with four contenders: Angela Merkel, Harry Styles, Jacinto Arden, and Barbie. After an audience vote, Barbe was selected as the centrepiece of the show. Audience members shared ideas on what Barbie could work with during her show- her enemies Polly Pocket and Oppenheimer; her struggles with the patriarchy, and of course a group of Kens.
Over the next hour we were thoroughly engrossed in the thrilling tale of Barbie as she, Polly Pocket, Oppenheimer Ken, Einstein Ken, Black Ken and Stripper Ken hatched a plan to… nuke the Mattel headquarters which just happened to be full of mothers, children and a pregnant golden retriever. Yes, really.
Shamilton as a concept is completely bizarre, but as the audience reaction showed- people were LOVING it. In terms of links with the original Hamilton, the opening number was a clear parody of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Alexander Hamilton but beyond that point the songs were built around simple hiphop beats. The show transitioned seamlessly between dialogue and musical numbers, and the incredibly talented cast of six collaborated so well to ensure that the story still flowed and made sense… as much as it could.
Personally, I’d love to return to Shamilton to see how they approach the show with a different premise, such as a historical figure rather than a doll. If you’re a fan of improv theatre, this is definitely a show not to miss!
Ticket information Shamilton can be found on the Edinburgh Festival Fringe website.
