This hour-long show was the perfect length. It was a mix of old fan favorites – gags familiar to anyone who has seen their Swines tour, and brand new songs and skits. Roscommon received the usual amount of hate.
A young Galwegian in the audience who confessed to being a historian of the 1700s was told: “You really need to move on from the 18th century” to which he responded: “Well to be fair that is the common timezone in Roscommon”. “Don’t be funnier than us,” warned the trio.
This clever crowdwork at the beginning really sold Seán ‘Foil’ Finegan, Conor ‘Arms’ McKenna and Seán ‘Hog’ Flanagan’s skill for crafting a laugh as they made continual callbacks during the show.
The troupe’s performative range is always entertaining. Their musical skill (whether singing opera or a ballad of Ryanair ) and vocal manipulation for impressions is as impressive as their quick-thinking and creative sound design. (I hope the King’s Head removed the watermelon guts from the carpet ).
They do very well in smaller venues where the madness is much more personal. This trio is a pleasure to laugh with, because they are laughing too: Foil Arms and Hog clearly have a lot of fun together, and crack each other up to the point they’re fighting to keep character.
A cracking hour of comedy, for us and them.
Foil Arms and Hog are working on a new show and hope to announce a tour soon. Check their website https://www.foilarmsandhog.ie/ for updates.
