Josh Pickar: Getting Off comedy review – A case of tonal whiplash
Ill-judged attempts at humour mar an hour with the potential to be powerful
Josh Pickar served as a US capital defence attorney for seven years. His role was to defend men on Death Row, with clients including the notorious neo-Nazi Dylann Roof, who shot nine people dead at a Charleston church in order to start a race war.
Pickar’s work wasn’t about proving these men were innocent. Instead, he was trying to ensure they were granted clemency. He explains how he quickly built meaningful relationships with them (even Roof whose crimes were a huge moral battle for the lawyer) and the insights he shares into a broken system are fascinating. Pickar must have plenty more stories to tell and, as straight storytelling, they would make a powerful hour.
But the show falls flat when he attempts to weave in comedy. It feels choppy, the comedic elements not fully blended in, and jumps from a sincere lecture about the ins and outs of the capital punishment system in the US to camp humour, and back again. The pacing suffers as a result, never settling into a consistent rhythm long enough for either mode to land. By the end, the tonal whiplash outweighs its strengths.
Josh Pickar: Getting Off, Assembly Roxy, until 30 August, 7.40pm; picture: Steve Ullathorne.