Review: Tiny King at The Motley Bauhaus

Review by Greg Gorton

Nathan Hugh Robért’s “Tiny King” is a fun little piece of stand up crossed with character work that, while it misses some of its marks, still makes for a moderately enjoyable show to catch. The premise is simple: a prince of low stature (literally) must recoup billions in losses by doing a stand-up show, despite having no skills and a nasty temper.

Robért, fully costumed in royal regalia, arrives on stage ready to be laughed at. His first jokes are designed to fail, whether due to “technical failure” or “poor understanding” of comedic rules. This first five minutes is by far the strongest part of the night, as there is much fun to be had at mocking the privileged little monarch and his petty little problems.

It is when Robért breaks from this character to tell other jokes that things become more clouded. At this point, is a joke’s “failure” a part of a character that the comic has slightly slipped out of, or is it really a joke that didn’t land? Robért himself doesn’t seem to know, either, as his response to the odd missed mark serves to highlight the mistake while not being true to the first-established royal.

Part of the reason for this clouding is Robért taking the time to talk about his own personal experience growing up as a young child smaller than those in the playground, and with a limp due to being born with cerebral palsy. While Robért’s height difference today might not even be realised by the people around him, being a comic does not make you immune to being insecure.

It’s clear that the creation of this work took form with a determination to turn a real insecurity into an absurd joke, both as a way to fight it and a way to safely talk to people about it. This concept has worked for Adam Hills, Luke McGregor, and Maddie Stewart, and Robért’s attempts to excise his own demons is a brilliant idea. It is especially important for him to do so for all men, as it is an insecurity faced by too many of us, and speaks to a problem in the modern concept of masculinity.

However, I do think that, having created as strong a character as the prince, one that harkens to “The Wizard of Id”, or the visual gags of Mel Brooks, this exploration through comedy would have been stronger if Robért stayed within that character, or at least only told jokes when within that character.

That isn’t to say no jokes work when Robért is simply himself. There are many great moments, including a little play about his fantasy of growing tall. It’s just that flaws in the comedy are illuminated, rather than shrugged off or hidden within an over-the-top character.

“Tiny King” is a show that takes a deep dive into a topic most comics only make off-hand jokes about. There are some really decent jokes to be found, and while it might not be the most polished work it is something you could easily catch when seeing other shows at The Motley for MICF.