Review – Abigoliah Schamaun: Girl Going to Hell

When comedians have technical failures on their opening night they don’t usually give themselves a 240 volt electric shock and then just kind of roll with it, but then Abigoliah Schamaun isn’t like most comics. Hailing from New York City, she’s in town for a couple of weeks to explain to us exactly why she’s going to hell. On the whole, her case is pretty damn solid.

This is punk rock comedy: shocking, minimalist, energetic, honest, and a mess of fucking fun. Abigoliah is a charismatic host who displays some of the best crowd-work there is to be found at the Fringe. She makes dark and hilarious confessions (“I went off my anti-depressants. Bad news I want to kill myself. Good news I can cum when I masturbate”), asks some intimate questions (“Who here’s had a threesome?”) and then she sets herself on fire. It’s terrifying, but only if you’re easily apprehensive and even then it’s still very entertaining.

Girl Going to Hell is fiery femme fun, appearing at Rhino Room’s recently opened cafe (and sometimes cocktail bar) Howling Owl.