Comedian Daniel Kitson has already won the accolades of the comedy world. Back in 2002 he won the coveted Perrier Award at the Edinburgh Festival. The following year he rebuffed the inevitable audience his new found fame brought and swayed off course by performing a theatre piece called A made up story. C-90 is certainly a very well crafted descendant of this first piece. C-90 will do. In fact it will really do, a lot | | A cassette |
C-90 is a beautiful piece of writing, full of melancholic interweaving of characters and stories. A charming and very funny story revolving around Henry Leonard Boden, an archivist for a company whose job is to log compilation cassette tapes, hence the name C-90. Henry is close to retirement age and with his services no longer required by the company following the demise of the homemade compilation cassette we join him on his last day at work. It is also Millicent’s last day. Millicent is a lollypop lady who has spent years saving ‘the future’ from the motoring motorbikes and trundling trucks. There are other characters that feature along the way and Kitson somehow enables you to gain considerable insight into their lives in only a few short minutes. Not to mention the occasional feathered friend consuming a variety of homemade treats. Kitson performs his one man show as a narrator but with the occasional personification of his characters’ quirky traits. With his comedic abilities the story is enchantingly funny. Typically he leaves the audience with a longing to find out more about the characters and their lives, underlining the melancholic romanticism distinctive in Kitson’s work.  | | Daniel Kitson |
The writing is pure genius, you really get the feeling that every line has been carefully cross referenced and every detail lovingly crafted into place. This writing and performance is enhanced by a wonderful set and lighting which are also beautifully understated and enhance the script. Moral messages or a new hero for modern society?The piece makes you wonder if there is a higher moral point being made; to appreciate the smaller things in life, not to judge a book by its cover, to remember to acknowledge your peers for their efforts. Or perhaps it is just a brilliant piece of writing that reflects those who aren’t often heroes but . . . maybe they should be. This is a very accessible piece of theatre and it is short, over in 1 hour 20 minutes, so what more do you need? If you get the chance, you must see this show. | 
