Adam Riches: The Captain theatre review – Swimming against the tide
Adam Riches turns the extraordinary true story of Channel swimmer Matthew Webb into an intense, immersive and unexpectedly moving Fringe experience
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Acclaimed character comedian Adam Riches returns to the Fringe with a slightly more serious piece than you might expect. It follows the true story of Captain Matthew Webb, the first man to swim the English Channel unaided, in 1875. Part Victorian lecture (Summerhall’s Anatomy Theatre is the perfect backdrop) and part eulogy, we’re drawn into a world of grim determination, unthinkable feats and deep courage. Really drawn in. Ten minutes into the show, Riches has the audience copying his swimming strokes, coffee cups knocked off tables and faces getting whacked by a wayward front crawl. Riches plays Webb’s backer, swimming teacher Fred Beckwith.
To say this is an intense performance would be an understatement. Riches builds an enthralling narrative around Webb, Beckwith and JB Johnson (Webb’s rival), all without props, music or tech. Just a blackboard, chalk and an unmoving body beneath a sheet on a gurney. The build-up to the denouement is subtle until it’s upon the room like a wave. Once Webb is crossing the Channel, affectionately known as ‘Old Channy’, we’re chanting along, cult-like, with Riches’ commands.
The room is rooting for Webb as if we’re actually witnessing him conquer jellyfish, freezing water, a storm, and miles of sea, rather than watching a lone man in a lecture theatre tell an epic story. It’s sometimes hard to know what’s comedy and what is simply part of history, so convincing is Riches’ performance. There are moments of Boosh-like surrealism and turns of phrase that elicit somewhat unsure laughter. In the end, Webb and Beckwith’s story is enough. We don’t need the big laughs.
Adam Riches: The Captain, Summerhall, until 31 August, 11.45am; 18, 25 August, 7pm.