This Review is from August 2024
Sid is half British, half Indian, half American “…and I really like saying it that way.” Or as my pedantry English brain insists on putting it, a person from the USA, of Indian descent, living here in the UK. In American Coloniser the comedian presents a fascinating and very funny show about our collective past and how best to effect change.
Sid offers his own backstory. This is his tenth anniversary of doing solo shows at the Fringe. He describes his first Edinburgh hour, performing to crickets on the top deck of a bus. I think I might have been at that gig; I’ve been at many like it.
Since then, Sid has become a very good comedian, and here’s a bit of a twist, a human rights lawyer. Since 2019, his shows have raised money for the Center for Gender and Refugee Studies, an organisation based in San Francisco, committed to ensuring that the United States upholds its obligations towards asylum seekers as enshrined in both the Geneva Convention and US law. And in court he has taken on and beaten Trump twice. Now he’s taking on Joe Biden.
Is Sid fighting for justice to honour his Indian ancestors? Did Sid’s forbears bravely triumph over adversity to achieve greatness? Well, no. They were “thieves and traitors” who helped colonise India before the British. Not role models, as much as a history lesson in what not to do. It’s important, the comedian argues, that we are aware of and learn form our history. And make better choices.
This is a joke heavy show filled with sharp topical gags and clever political observations. It isn’t easy to do topical comedy right now “what else is left to say?”
Sid emphasises the significance of collective resistance in creating positive change. The comedian wants his audience to act. The comedy becomes a call to arms. Brilliant.
Martin Walker
Podcast interview with Sid Singh
Tickets HERE
Donate to the Center for Gender and Refugee Studies HERE
Reviews of Sid Singh: American Coloniser collated by the British Comedy Guide HERE
Sid’s Profile HERE
