Watching a man shake sandwich ham from his head without the aid of his hands is an experience that I won't forget in a hurry. Indeed going to see Sam Simmons is an experience in itself and for the most part, a very positive experience.
Sam Simmon's About the Weather isn't so much a stand up show as a one man play. The play positions Simmons as an everyday commuter lusting after one of his fellow passengers whilst negotiating the construction of Ikea furniture (which meets a very satisfying conclusion) and waging war on a untrustworthy garden gnome. This is all chaotically strung together by the omnipresent narration of a 'weatherman' on the radio and utilising nervous audience members to play the role of the subsidiary characters in his play. The play veers off into sketches or just into the bizarre tangents of Sam Simmons mind.
The utmost credit must to be given to Simmons for being a truly unique presence in an industry that is filled to the brim with homogenous performers. He is an incredibly imaginative and innovative comedian that is relentlessly frivolous but underpinned with an intelligence that makes it more than a little reminiscent of The Mighty Boosh. But Simmons at times falls into a trap that The Mighty Boosh didn't, of seemingly trying to be silly just for the sake of being silly. About the Weather perhaps wasn't consistent enough but many times throughout the show Simmons genuinely illicits belly roaring laughter from the crowd. I'd certainly recommend going to see this show but it's still a little rough round the edges. Nailing this surreal humour is a very difficult balancing act that Simmons has not yet quite mastered.