Review: I’m A Philosopher! Why The F*** Am I Here? (Cockpit Theatre)

Review by Phil McCullough

⭐️⭐️⭐

Have you ever wondered what reality TV might look like if TV producers put intellectuals and great minds in the Big Brother house, jungle camp or Love Island villa? I’m A Philosopher: Why The F*** Am I Here,  the latest production from Make My Show Productions, playing as part of the Camden Fringe Festival, takes the format of I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! and replaces the usual celebrities with some of history's greatest philosophers, throwing their complex ideas and conflicting ideals into the jungle together. With comedy, lip-syncing and live audience voting on the bush tucker menu, is this the fresh take on reality TV we've been waiting for, or does it feel as gimmicky and as inauthentic as a showmance?

The concept is undoubtedly the show's biggest strength. I particularly liked the in-app voting system, which allows the audience to vote out their least favourite philosophers at two points during the show. You can watch the votes change in real time on your phone before the results are revealed to the philosophers, creating a genuine sense that the audience is controlling what happens next. We also got to decide which philosopher faces a bushtucker trial, and this was probably the freshest and most enjoyable part of the evening. The production claims that ‘This show is never the same twice’, although, just like reality TV itself, there are only so many directions the format can take. I suspect the performances are not wildly different from one night to the next, but that is arguably part of the fun. Reality TV has always been about giving the audience the illusion of control while producers quietly manipulate the drama behind the scenes, and this production understands that.

Roger Francis' script brings together philosophers from across the ages and puts their very different ideas into the most unlikely of settings. Jean Jacques Rousseau, or JJ, believes the camp should make decisions collectively, while Ayn Rand argues that everyone should be free to do exactly what they want. Watching these huge philosophical ideas play out over arguments about camp life is an entertaining premise, and when the script gets it right, it is genuinely funny. Some of the jokes don’t land as well as they should though, for instance when Tommy and JJ discuss the show's presenters, there is a mix-up between "Decadent" and the names Dec and Ant. On paper, it sounds like the sort of silly wordplay that should get a big laugh, but on stage it took a while for the joke to land.

There are several moments like this where you can see exactly what the joke is trying to do, but the audience reaction does not quite match the intention. One element I particularly enjoyed was the Voice of God, with the TV producer speaking to the philosophers over the camp loudspeaker and stepping in whenever the drama needs a little nudge. Anyone who has worked in television will recognise the VOG immediately, and it is a clever way of bringing the machinery of reality TV into the theatrical world. It also creates some nice opportunities for the production to poke fun at the way TV producers manufacture drama.

Maddie Hurley's direction does a good job of establishing the reality TV world. Each philosopher arrives with a VT introducing them to the audience, complete with a quick biography, and these introductions are quirky and full of character. The simple set is also effective, immediately creating the impression of an I'm a Celeb style jungle camp without needing to over-complicate things. Where the production loses some of its energy is in its use of lip-syncing. The song choices feel dated, and the performances do not quite land as either genuinely funny or particularly entertaining. I found myself wondering whether another theatrical device could have been used to create the breathing space between scenes. The production already has a strong interactive format, so it did not necessarily need to rely on lip-syncing to keep the audience engaged.

The ensemble cast work well together and each performer creates a distinct identity. Oscar Nicholson is suitably on edge as Tommy, while Laura Shipler Chico is particularly funny as both Ayn Rand and Judith Butler, managing to make the two characters feel completely different. Will Robertson is excruciatingly annoying as Jordan Peterson, which I suspect is exactly what the production wants, and the whole ensemble has a strong chemistry that keeps the jungle camp feeling lively. The standout performance for me was Senne Lambrechts as Jean-Jacques Rousseau. His characterisation is excellent, and he produces some of the funniest moments of the evening. His mannerisms, facial expressions and ridiculous reactions had me tittering even when there wasn't an actual gag in the script. Sometimes the reaction is funnier than the joke itself, and Lambrechts understands exactly how to play that.

The ending proved particularly strong, though I won’t spoil exactly what happens in this moment. I will say it is a clever final moment that neatly turns the joke back on the audience and perhaps says more about our appetite for reality TV than some of the earlier gags. Ultimately, I’m A Philosopher: Why The F*** Am I Here? is an entertaining and inventive idea that works best when it embraces the ridiculousness of putting some of history's greatest thinkers into a reality TV jungle. It may not always hit the comedic heights it aims for, but there is enough here to keep you amused and, occasionally, make you think.

I’m A Philosopher: Why The F*** Am I Here? plays at the Cockpit Theatre until 15th August. Tickets from https://www.thecockpit.org.uk/show/im_a_philosopher_why_the_f_am_i_here

Photos by Soren Harrison