Rom Com Con, The Blind Tiger, Brighton, May 26 (From The Argus)

Rom Com Con, The Blind Tiger, Brighton, May 26

12:30pm Monday 28th May 2012 in Fringe Reviews By Jessica Marshall Mchattie

Comedy pair Lizzy Mace and Juliette Burton are on a mission – to find love in the manner of a romantic comedy. But unlike the heroines of every rom com ever made, these two ladies don't have a tear-jerking soundtrack, immaculate hair or a guaranteed Prince Charming after 90 minutes.

Instead, they borrow the methods found in the successful romantic comedies from the past 15 years to try to snare some dates. Using short videos interviews, photos and re-enactments of key moments, they share their quest.

Citing Hitch, How To Make Friends And Influence People, and Knocked Up as films in which the protagonist meets the love of her life in a bar, they hit a bar, and try out embarrassing first lines on potential suitors. Following the leads in Pretty Woman, My Big Fat Greek Wedding and Miss Congeniality, they have makeovers in the hope of winning over a man. And so it continues – in an endless stream of committed and humorously flawed logic, our two leading ladies try everything they can, eventually resorting to holding auditions to find worst enemies, hoping that what works for Sandra Bullock in The Proposal will work for them.

To begin with, the show does seem a little desperate, perhaps anti-feminist, and a bit cringe-worthy. But as it goes on, the warm, open and genuinely funny personalities of Mace and Burton emerge, leading to a chuckling audience willing them on. Like in a standard rom com, this show leaves the viewers with a feelgood feeling and an optimistic message for all those in pursuit of love. The show is accessible and sweet, and Mace and Burton are engaging and endearing.