Comedy fans still hurting from the demise of the British TV masterpiece 'The Office' may take especially kindly to this hour-long spoof of the food packaging industry. That show set the bar for finding humour in stilted, awkward moments, and there’s plenty of that here. Hey, the troupe is even called The Awkwards.

A U.K.- based supermarket chain is opening a new store in (insert name of Fringe host city here), and has sent a trio of delegates to qualm any environmental concerns of the citizenry (played by us). The only problem is, one of the team members is an earnest ecology professor who is increasingly uncomfortable with the claims being made by the other two. This is an actor's show, and all three are great. As the compromised doctor, Matthew Bellwood’s (intentional) stiffness grows into a funny, frustrated rage. And Tom Adams has an oily Ricky Gervais quality (another 'Office' reference) as the TV celeb hired to wow the crowd. The gold star goes to Harriet Plewis, who nails the smiling, plastic corporate Barbie who fights to maintain calm amidst a
crumbling presentation. The comedic style is all over the map. There’s broad slapstick, cutting satire and lots of general silliness. The troupe seems content to mix it all up and see what works, which is fine since most of it works quite well. Expect giggles and laughter.

CBC
Reviewer: Mike O’Brien
Rating: 4 Stars