Anyone who has ever tentatively accepted a calendar invite to anything with the word ‘workshop’ in it will relate. Because James and Charles are those guys: the overpaid, overconfident and under-skilled growth consultants that stalk the corridors of corporate-land. So spot-on is their portrayal of that particular subset of society (the MBA who has never done a day’s work in his – and it’s almost always his – life), that this show should come with a trigger warning for those lucky enough to have escaped the world of upscaling, downscaling and synergy alignment. Shudder.
It’s a rich seam to mine, with heaps of funny cos it’s true laughs. From the specific writing hell-style that is the LinkedIn profile, to decoding job adverts, to a natty little pop quiz called ‘What’s The Point Of HR?’ (hint: this bit is short), everything hits home. James and Charles then turn their attention to the wider world, applying all we’ve learned to things like Shakespeare and movie titles. This feels less fresh; a bit of a lost opportunity as there’s still plenty to talk about back at the office. That said, Legal’s feedback on the Gettysburg address strikes so many chords with the audience that they vibrate like a symphony orchestra. It’s all well-observed but maximising the office-based vertical might make the low-hanging fruit even richer.