Open spots can often be funny for all the wrong reasons. At best you
expect to see a fairly inexperienced comedian still finding his or her way but
with perhaps a few glimmers of future promise. Howard Spencer-Mosley blows
these preconceptions out of the water.
It would be easy to throw labels at what he does - surreal, novelty,
experimental and musical are just a few that spring to mind - and yet none
do it justice. Wonderfully different and inventive he has created an act
and persona that is absolutely dripping with originality, creativity and
(if you've seen the same show I saw) other substances.
He could
comfortably share a bill with any established circuit acts, begging the question, "Why is he still doing open
spots?". I'm sure the paid acts can't help but feel a slight pang of guilt counting
their notes at the end of the evening as Spencer-Mosley leaves with just a sticky
mess to show for his efforts.
It's a bold statement, and one not used lightly,
but Howard Spencer-Mosley is one of the most exciting new acts to emerge in
a long time. With a longer set of the same exceptionally high standard
he could easily delight audiences as a headline act. Until that day comes, the comedy
world is a poorer place.
The Other Side - York - 22/05/2004 - Open
Spot
