Be-Dom definitely have syncopation but occasionally for me they missed a beat. Be-Dom are a percussionist group from Portugal and must have one of the best opening sets on the Fringe. Housed in the Underbelly Pastures the stage projects out and is surrounded on three sides. A white curtain hangs down each side of the stage obscuring whatever lies on the other side. Then the show begins with shadows of the players projected larger than life on the white veil before us. Wonderful.
The musicians do not use shop bought percussion instruments but rather anything you might find in a city dump or left abandoned by the side of the road. Plastic drums, tins, tubing you name it’s probably featured there. For added effect they also use their bodies as musical instruments, rhythmically beating their chests, legs arms to create a tempo which is hard to resist.
The pulse of the show was frequently interrupted by comedic sets which were stretched out too long, I can only watch a duel of finger clicking for so long no matter how well done before it starts to lose its magic, and audience participation needs to be carefully regulated before I begin to get fed up of both myself and my neighbours doing something the people on the stage could probably do two hundred times better. If the show had concentrated more on highlighting the fantastic skills of the performers rather than trying to get the audiences involved and occasionally turning into what felt like a children’s show then this act would easily have got 4 stars.
Show times
11-30 August (not 16), 2pm.
Ticket prices
£12-£14 (£10.50-£12.50)