Sydnee Washington: My Black Barbie Story comedy review – A wild ride
A whirlwind show that makes for a magnetic, anything-goes Fringe debut
Sydnee Washington’s best friend as a kid was her life-sized black Barbie doll. Since then, she’s lived a thousand lives. And she’s here to tell you about as many as she can. Armed with a slideshow of clip art and animated text, it’s a whirlwind Fringe debut. Washington talks a mile a minute, skipping through hundreds of slides to stay on time. Raised by her elderly, god-fearing family, she had no friends. In college, she befriends white women and discovers partying, a theme that continues into her days as a bottle girl, where she explores her sexuality and experiments with drugs. It’s a wild ride; a little too wild for some in this mid-afternoon crowd.
Washington is a magnetic presence. While some of the Americanisms go over the audience’s head and the ending veers into moralising that’s at odds with the lighthearted material that’s come before, it’s hard not to be won over.
Sydnee Washington: My Black Barbie Story, Monkey Barrel Cabaret Voltaire, until 16 August, 3.50pm.