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‘Lardo’ Reviews
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'Energetic, touching and tremendously funny' Everything Theatre
'Delivers heat and heart' The Upcoming
'You won't find another show as unique as this' West End Wilma
'A brilliant, barmy play' Time Out
'Huge fun...a smart bit of programming' The Stage
'Knock Out' The Public Reviews
'Nick Karimi's performance is exquisite' LondonTheatre1
'A brutally original and heavyweight production' Grumpy Gay Critic
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The Upcoming: ★★★★★
“Enough spandex to throttle a horse”, boasts the flyer for offbeat wrestling comedy Lardo at The Old Red
Lion Theatre. There’s not quite enough of the stretchy fabric to comfortably cover the bulk of the titular
Lardo, whose real name is Robert (Daniel Buckley), but don’t be put off! And rest assured that no animals
were throttled in the making of this production; the only horse there is the hoarse throat the audience
will leave with after cheering on the flabby Glaswegian hero.
As Axl Rose screeches out Welcome to The Jungle, the atmosphere of a wrestling tournament builds, bright
lights pulsating over a full-scale ring. The play starts out in The Depot, Glasgow’s leading wrestling venue,
where it’s fight night. The wrestlers trash-talk one another, strutting and flexing their toned bodies around
the ring with pre-bout bravado, before some seriously impressive combat ensues, slickly choreographed by
wrestling director Henry Devas. This is the world of Tartan Wrestling Madness, and it’s a world that Lardo
is desperate to be part of.
Teased at school, Lardo turns to YouTube as an outlet for his wrestling aspirations and, after racking up the
views, scores a meeting with The Depot’s owner, Gavin Stairs (Nick Karimi). He gets one shot on the bill
and, to everyone’s surprise, he’s a hit. “Lardomania” has begun, but soon the wrestling goes off script, and
personal problems are brought into the ring. Stairs is on his final warning for breaching several health and
safety regulations, but that’s the least of his worries.
Lardo is high-octane, testosterone-pumping performance for pint-drinkers, but it scores high on the
feminism stakes too. Thankfully, there are no ring girls in sight, but the story’s women are fierce fighters in
more ways than one. As well as boasting an impressive physical dimension, the play is vigorously wellwritten by Mike Stone. It’s impossible to believe Lardo is his first full-length play; every single character is
far, far more than their ring name. Behind the impressive stunts are several impressive storylines, all
brought out with aggression and dexterity by the phenomenal cast, under Finn Caldwell’s direction.
Hilarious, face-screaming and complex, Lardo delivers heat and heart, all the while wearing a Lycra leotard.
It shouldnae be missed!
Everything Theatre: ★★★★★
There’s a phenomenon sweeping the stages at The Old Red Lion. It’s Lardo, the story of a chubby young
Scotsman who dreams of making a name for himself in the world of wrestling while navigating a very tricky
coming of age journey. Lardo brings together a range of well developed characters to support a story of
secrets and deception – but does so with a strong moral at its heart. The performance covers some tricky
subject matter, but leaves audiences full of hope that doing the right thing is, quite simply, always the right
thing to do.
It’s well-written, well-acted, and a very high-energy evening of entertainment. The design is perfection: the
stage has been transformed into a wrestling ring and the audience surrounds it in stadium seating. The walls
are ideal for bringing to life a tired, underfunded and dirty wrestling club in Scotland.
The production relies on the audience to bring the atmosphere of the wrestling club alive – when the wrestling
match takes place, the audience in the theatre become the audience at the match. There’s such an excellent
jovial mood concocted in this dark and smoky room that shouting along in support of Lardo doesn’t feel at all
forced or concocted.
You can’t help but want Lardo to do well. This is largely in part to an absolutely wonderful performance from
Daniel Buckley as the wrestler. Lardo’s not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but he sees the world as a
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possibility. He believes in his own ability to make change for himself – and also sees potential in girlfriend Kelly
(a charming and sensible Laura Darrall) to achieve her own dreams when it comes to her turtle studies. His
belief in the ability of good to triumph leaves him vastly open to others taking advantage of him, as they well
do – and truthfully, his youthful naivety and reluctance to grow up does result in some extremely bad
decisions on his journey.
There are many layers to this story, and each is brought to life brilliantly by a strong supporting cast. Nick
Karimi is a force to watch as sociopathic match promoter Stairs. He’s electric and full of tremendous
personality.
Strong accolades are also due for Zoe Hunter as Mary. Initially her character is presented as a part of the
‘spectacle’ of wrestling; she’s a tough as nails female wrestler in skimpy clothes who takes no prisoners. But as
the play progresses, her character evolves and reveals itself to be one of the key people driving the storyline
forward. Hunter is excellent; she fully showcases the range of emotions and personas that the character of
Mary is holding together. She creates a Mary who, on the surface, appears at her strongest when shouting and
dominating in the wrestling ring, but who in truth is at her strongest when quietly pledging support to enemy
Cassie (Rebecca Pownall).
It is also interesting to look at the relationship between Lardo and Derek (Stuart Ryan). Derek is the father of
Lardo’s girlfriend, Kelly, could have easily served as source of conflict (for as we know from writing, all Dads
are over protective of their daughters). But in this nuanced script, the relationship is very different – even
though Lardo makes mistakes to the detriment of Derek’s daughter, Derek continues to act as a father figure
to Lardo and the friendship and respect between the two men is a very unique and positive one to have
brought to life on stage.
There’s little to fault here – except that Lardo needs a bigger theatre that can accommodate more people. The
cast are flawless, the scenery is atmospheric, and the writing is outstanding. Lardo believes in big things
happening for him; this production absolutely deserves big things happening for it as well.
Time Out: ★★★★
If you can’t stomach two hours of moose knuckles spilling out from Spandex crotches then steer clear of
‘Lardo’, Mike Stone’s brilliantly barmy play about the theatre of pro-wrestling.
Tubby wrestling nut Lardo (Daniel Buckley) wants to be hired by Tartan Wrestling Madness, Glasgow’s answer
to WWE. They have a series of lurid characters on their books – Wee Man, Gold-digger, Whiplash Mary (‘a
storm in a D-cup’) – but it’s run by the ferocious Stairs (Nick Karimi), who couldn’t care less if his wrestlers
break a wrist or detach a retina.
Lardo’s hired and suddenly we’re the ringside audience. It’s mayhem. There’s an actual wrestling ring on stage,
and full-on matches: clotheslines, elbow drops, the lot. Stairs makes us chant and – half-heartedly at first as
we clutch glasses of house white, then ever louder – we whistle and whoop. It’s impossible not to get sucked
into the sheer electric joy of these matches, feeding some animalistic desire to see victory and defeat, to see
grown men groping each other like teenagers necking on a first date.
Between the matches, a storyline with dark undercurrents unfolds. Each character is carefully drawn and
beautifully acted, particularly Karimi’s vicious Stairs and Buckley’s endearing Lardo. Stone does demand huge
gear shifts from us as we move in an instant from the grim drama of these characters’ lives to the artificial
mania of the ring.
The bouts are the best kind of theatre: we still get that adrenaline thrill even though we know it’s all fake.
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Except, as Stairs becomes increasingly sadistic in his attempts to bag big audiences the punches are no longer
pulled and the play asks where fake ends and real begins. There are whiffs of ‘Whiplash’ and ‘Foxcatcher’ – a
young gun trying to impress a deranged mentor – and a sideways glance at that old question of how far is too
far when it comes to entertainment, but mostly it’s an excuse for choke-slams and Lycra.
This is an exuberant play that’s desperate to burst out of its tiny theatre, a brilliant way of exorcising those
brutal Freudian fantasies of sex and violence. For Stone, all the world’s no longer a stage – it’s a wrestling ring.
The Stage: ★★★★
It takes a degree of audacity to wedge a wrestling ring into the compact space at the Old Red Lion, but that’s
exactly what Finn Caldwell’s production does.
Mike Stone’s debut full-length play is set in the world of Scottish wrestling. It’s a world of posturing and
persona, of sweat and swagger. And the ring is far from being just decorative. The scenes are interspersed with
proper wrestling matches, full of body slams and elbow drops.
Daniel Buckley is massively endearing as Lardo, the wrestling nut and minor YouTube sensation with dreams of
making it big on the Tartan scene, strutting and puppyish in his spandex. Nick Karimi exudes menace as the
hard-nosed promoter without ever turning into a cartoon villain. He exudes a necessary edge.
In terms of narrative, ironically the play is a bit weedy: there’s some rivalry, real and manufactured, while a
subplot about Lardo’s girlfriend feels bolted on. The low-key ending also feels unearned, as if an afterthought.
It’s far more interesting when focusing on image and fakery in wrestling, the grimier side of the world the
characters inhabit, and the constant pressure to ramp up the violence.
It’s also huge fun as an experience. And a smart bit of programming by the Old Red Lion in this regard. When
the music’s blaring and the lights are blazing, when the audience has been whipped up by the performers,
when everyone is whooping and stomping, the atmosphere in the room shifts and everyone becomes part of
the spectacle.
West End Wilma: ★★★★★
Now I’m going to be honest you here dear readers. I am not a wrestling fan. Now don’t get me wrong, since
moving in with a boy I understand that when Brock Lesnar beat the undefeated Undertaker in last year’s WWE
Wrestlemania it was A.VERY.BIG.DEAL. I suppose the theatre equivalent would be your Am-Dram fanatic Aunt
Mable taking over from Kerry Ellis in CATS. But still the world of spandex and egos just isn’t for me (I get quite
enough of that in the West End thank you very much).
But there was something intriguing about the show Lardo, which is currently playing at the Old Red Lion
Theatre in Angel. Combining wrestling with drama, the piece follows a slightly plumpish wannabe wrestler
from Scotland called Lardo and his journey from small time gigs and youtube, to the bright light of the Tartan
Wrestling League. So far, so Flashdance.
But I had to ‘smack down’ my initial impressions of the show as it is utterly brilliant. Crammed into the small
upstairs space, the audience sit around a functional wrestling ring which switches from domestic locations to
the setting of Lardo’s rise to fame. Max Dorey’s set, Matthew Daw’s Lighting and Kieran Lucas’ sound are all on
point as they recreate the pounding excitement of a wrestling match, while seamlessly slipping into the
straight drama.
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What is brilliant about Mike Stone’s script and Finn Caldwell’s direction is that the show never feels like the
plot stops for some wrestling or vice versa- the plot IS the wrestling. Stone’s script is sharply witty and his
characters full of fleshy realism, while Caldwell’s direction switches from fantastic up-beat entertainment in
the fake violence of the wrestling to stark smacks of grit when things turn ugly.
As our hero Lardo, Daniel Buckley brings just the right about of innocence, ignorance and venerability to the
role and he isn’t afraid to make the audience laugh with him. Nick Karimi is electric as the manipulative and
unhinged wrestling boss with a grudge. Four lettered words fall out of his mouth either as tiny drops of heroin
or blades spat in your face and it’s easy to see how Rebecca Pownall’s Health and Safety Officer falls for his
twisted charms. Another thing that is exciting about this show is it pushes female wrestlers into the forefront
of the action and Zoe Hunter’s Mary is just as tough as her male counterparts, but keeps the plot rooted in a
minimum wage small-town realism.
So if you’re like I was and not sure that this show is quite for you, throw your assumptions aside immediately.
Lardo is a sharp, fast paced and engaging piece of drama and at fringe theatre prices you won’t find another
show as unique as this.
The Public Reviews: ★★★★
It is many years since wrestling disappeared from the schedules of the main television channels and icons such
as Big Daddy and Giant Haystacks have faded into distant memory. So it will come as a surprise to many that
the sport is still going strong, at least in Glasgow where Mike Stone’s new play is set.
Lardo is a rotund, not too bright young man who has not quite grown up. He believes that his father died in
the wrestling ring when he was a child and sets his heart on going into the same profession. Daniel Buckley is
ideal in the role; wearing spandex to emphasise every unflattering bulge, it is easy to believe that he would
create a sensation on You Tube and generate the following needed to draw crowds to Wrestling. Buoyed by
his internet success, he turns his back on his pregnant girlfriend (Laura Darrall) and knocks on the door of
ruthless promoter Gavin Stairs (Nick Karimi).
The set for Finn Caldwell’s production could not be simpler – a wrestling ring filling almost the entire
performance space – and it provides the stage for several breathtakingly realistic fight sequences. The close
proximity of the audience, on two sides of the ring, is a key factor and the actors/fighters milk audience
participation for all it is worth. Wrestling in the liberated era includes both sexes and Zoe Hunter gives a strong
performance as “Whiplash Mary”, a fighter bruised inside and out.
As operated by Stairs, played by Karimi as an ugly thug, Wrestling is a seedy business, at odds with the modern
world. When a Health and Safety officer (Rebecca Pownall) intervenes, Stairs’ response is to seduce her and
carry on regardless to push for further extremes of violence. Lardo’s friend who fights under the name of
“Wee Man” (Stuart Ryan), takes the worst of the resulting knocks.
Due to doubling up of roles, all six actors get turns in the ring and the action eventually climaxes in a Rockystyle showdown. Those who have always seen Wrestling as part sport, part theatre, may well be inclined to
comment that it has at last found its natural home.
Stone touches on serious social issues – the irresponsibility of exploiting uneducated youngsters who are
greedy for fame and wealth and the immorality of feeding the public hunger for ever more realistic violence.
However, he does not dig too deep, preferring to wrap his play in a simple and sometimes trite storyline,
leaving plenty of room for the action sequences. On balance, his approach seems to have paid dividends and
he could well have created a sizeable popular hit.
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London Theatre 1: ★★★★
You’re youngish, fatherless, jobless, overweight so what do you do with your life? Well according to “Lardo” at
the Old Red Lion Theatre, you try and fulfil your childhood dream of being a professional wrestler on the
Tartan wrestling Madness (TMW) circuit.
And that’s exactly what Richard AKA Lardo (Daniel Buckley) tries to do. Lardo wants to emulate his deceased
professional wrestler father and, starting with a series of YouTube videos, recorded by his college girlfriend
Kelly (Laura Darrall) sets out to convince TWM boss Stairs (Nick Karimi) that he should be the next to join his
pool of wrestling stars along with the Wee Man (Stuart Ryan) and Whiplash Mary (Zoe Hunter). Being a
feckless young man. Lardo is completely focussed on this goal and even when Kelly gives him news that would
rock many a man’s world, he dismisses it and continues in his pursuit of TWM fame. Finally getting his wish
Lardo joins the elite of TWM becoming an overnight sensation through his crowd-pleasing abilities in the ring
and prodigious use of social media to promote himself and TMW making Stairs a very happy promoter.
Unfortunately, behind the scenes, all in the garden is not as rosy as it seems and Stairs has his own problems,
having to somehow balance the need to keep the punters coming by fulfilling their demands for more intense
fights, with the legal constraints of Health & Safety being rigorously enforced by local inspector Cassie
(Rebecca Pownall). Stairs’ solutions to both problems is pretty extreme leading to unforeseen consequences as
the world around him closes in dragging Lardo, Wee Man and Mary to dark places where they all need to reevaluate their priorities and life choices.
My initial thought on entering the theatre and seeing Max Dorey’s set – basically a wrestling ring huge and
totally dominating the performance space – was that this show was going to be something different. And it
definitely was that. I stopped watching ‘professional’ wrestling a long, long time ago – back in the days when
Big Daddy and Giant Haystacks ruled the ring. There was a brief resurgence of interest when WWE with the
likes of Randy Savage and the Undertaker appeared but on the whole my interest in the antics in the squared
circle are pretty limited. However, I’m guessing that “Lardo” writer Mike Stone is a bit of a fan as he explored
the dark underbelly of the sport
Director Finn Caldwell set the tone with the opening scene where two wrestlers punished a third for going offscript and genuinely hurting a third in a previous fight. Oh yes, spoiler alert here – professional wrestling is
fake. It is a beautifully piece of highly choreographed entertainment performed by well-trained fit men and
women in speedos and spandex. That opening scene – which subtlety tells an important story – really
emphasises the point that wrestling isn’t real, until suddenly it is. Stairs runs his team with a rod of iron and
leaves nothing to chance in his pursuit of providing an entertainment for the masses. I particularly loved the
‘script meetings’ between the wrestlers where they went through that night’s story. The cast worked
extremely well together and with the audience – one of the few shows I’ve been to where shouting at the
stage is actively encouraged – and the actual wrestling (under the direction of Henry Devas) was fast and
furious with the actors giving everything they had to the performance. Although he shouldn’t be, my favourite
character was Stairs. Nick Karimi’s performance was exquisite as Stirs displayed his various faces to the world.
Charming, manipulative, rabble rousing, almost sweet, dictatorial Stairs was all of them and more.
Unfortunately, Stairs was also a man on the edge of madness and, as the show progresses, his attempts to
push the boundaries of entertainment get more extreme leading to a marvellous point when the baying crowd
– and yes I was shouting for Lardo as much as everyone else – suddenly went silent, with the air of fun being
replaced by a palpable tension as the scene built up to its shocking – and for me completely unexpected –
ending.
“Lardo” is about many things – acquiring maturity, revenge, the pursuit of celebrity, trust and love and trying
to cover all of these could easily lead to a garbled and messy production but the combination of a well
researched and delivered script and tight direction means the show never loses its way and the final scene left
me for one caring about all of the characters and wanting to know the proverbial ‘what happens next?’
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Grumpy Gay Critic: ★★★★
Lardo starts off crude and chaotic, but reveals itself as a pile-driving comic-thriller with dangerous grit
beneath its grime, knocking you for six.
Overview
Lardo is an overweight kid who loves wrestling. He’s desperately wants to join Glasgow’s infamous wrestling
group, Tartan Wrestling Madness. He soon gets his big break, but at what cost to growing up will this take?
And what of the darker side of this seedy wrestling scene run by the domineering Gavin Stairs?
Writing
Mike Stone makes his playwriting début with Lardo, although you’d never think it given just how imaginative
this play is. Fusing together the theatre of the theatre and the theatre of pro-wrestling, Lardo is a mad-cap
clash of ideas, styles, and sights. However, it’s originality is one of the main criticisms about Lardo. It’s off-thewall blend of wrestling, stylised theatre, and straight-forward drama is actually difficult to relax into at first just
because it’s so different. It starts off a little too chaotic for you to get your head and your senses around what
on earth is actually going on and settle into the play. Adding to its initial inaccessibility is some very crude
themes, mainly very crass language, swaggering misogyny, and incredibly inappropriate jokes. Whilst these are
very organic to the down-and-out characters Stone has penned, it’s a bit of an unpleasant culture shock,
adding ta distance between you and the play at the start.
But once everything settles down, you’ve adjusted to the ricochet of styles and pacing, and gotten past the
initial distaste of the characters, Lardo opens up to be an incredibly intelligent and gripping piece of theatre.
Whilst the live wrestling matches played out as part of show could have been the gimmick on
which Lardo could easily have been propelled by, it suddenly turns into a fully-fledged and deep piece of
serious theatre. Throughout Lardo’s journey, Stone neatly and naturally weaves well observed themes about
poverty, belonging, and boy/fatherhood as well creating an intimidating thriller about the violent ambition of
an insatiable rogue.
The characters and the pacing of the overall story is tightly constructed. They central characters, Lardo, Kelly,
and Whiplash Mary, all feel real and surprisingly likeable once you push past their crude bravura. The villains of
the piece are quietly despicable adding a real sense of danger that outright melodrama just can’t achieve. The
development of their stories and epiphanies are never rushed or forced, feeling affectionate and natural,
helped by some wonderful brushes of black comedy. But Stone’s masterstroke is simultaneously increasing the
intrigue and the tension of the other side of the plot at a nerve-racking slow boil. You suddenly find yourself
hooked and by the end the show twitching with edge-of-your-seat apprehension about just how Lardo is going
to end.
The only other small criticism is that there are a few moments that, despite the eclectic feel to Lardo already,
manage to feel just a touch out of place. Particularly, one soliloquy felt too highly poetic by comparison to
everything else and didn’t really gel with the rest of the show. But even so, these never noticeably mar or
distract, and are really just minor casualties to just how out-there and adventurous Stone is being with
Lardo’s text.
Direction & Production
The first thing about Lardo you notice is the appearance of a mini-wrestling ring in the already tight space of
the Old Red Lion Theatre. But Max Dorey’s set design goes much further than just the ring by turning the
entire upstairs of the theatre pub into a dilapidated gymnasium, complete with graffitied and stained walls.
Given that the ring takes up almost all of the performance space, it gives an extra sense of claustrophobic
immersion to the entire show.
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Regardless, Finn Caldwell still ensures that there’s enough space for the show to never feel cramped, using the
areas in and around the ring for everything else that isn’t the actual wrestling. With some of Kieran Lucas’
sound design, Matthew Daw’s lighting design, and the cast’s abilities, you almost forget that Stone’s world
outside of the ring has been placed on and around it. It’s a remarkable use of the stage finding space and ways
around it that you’d think weren’t possible.
Furthermore, Caldwell works fantastically well with wrestling director Henry Devas to bring the blistering
bombast of a dingy wrestling night to body-slamming life. These moments add a real variety of pace and
bonkers awe. The wrestling matches are a little over-stylised and unconvincing, but this is very intentional. It
subtly sends up the ridiculousness of the adrenaline-soaked farce that is wresting, but more importantly, when
the real violence starts to happen, it’s a shocking and disturbing juxtaposition that feels uncomfortably real.
Cast
One of the other things that makes Lardo a bit difficult to get into is just how authentic the cast’s accents are.
The thick Glaswegian twang is a bit undecipherable at first unless you’re used to it, but at least you can’t say
that their accents are unbelievable. But this is possibly the only criticism against their daring and aggressive
zeal and nuanced humanity.
Leading the show is Daniel Buckley as Lardo, who is incredibly charming. There’s a real tenderness and naivety
that runs through Buckley’s performance that makes him a hero that grows on you very quickly. His
character’s bumbling comic turns are also sweetly funny, and his moments alongside Laura Darrall as Kelly are
also incredibly touching.
But it’s Nick Karimi as Gavin Stairs that bullishly dominates Lardo. Expertly sleazy and detestable, he slowly
evolves from greasy bottom-feeder into an unhinged and unpredictably threatening character, with his
sneering jibes and twisted ambition being genuinely unnerving. Karimi plays this role so well that you almost
believe that nothing other than getting his way is actually a possibility, adding an unstable caprice to the entire
show.
Verdict
Lardo is one of those rare pieces of theatre that completely takes you by surprise. Unexpected and
exceptional, you’ll leave punch-drunk and amazed at the show’s brutal originality and heavyweight production.
The Play’s The Thing: ★★★★
Deep in working class Scotland where you’re a celebrity if Poundland invites you to open their newest store
and Buckfast is the drink of choice, bullied Lardo desperately wants a regular spot on The Depot’s “Tartan
Wrestling Madness” bill. He has aspired towards this since he was a kid, wanting to live up to his dad who died
in the ring. Lardo is also a youtuber, a call centre worker and not coping well with his girlfriend Kelly’s
revelation of her pregnancy. Event promoter and producer Gavin Stairs takes a shine to the supposedly
fearless, pudgy Lardo and gives him a chance but Stairs is not the sort of person to give anything away for free.
Daniel Buckley plays Lardo as a wide-eyed, immature escapist with pathos and enthusiasm, like a well
intentioned but hapless pantomime hero. Nick Karimi’s Stairs is a fitting villain, a failed wrestler refusing to let
go of his past glories and grudges. Pushing the limits of health and safety regulations and the boundaries of
inspector Cassie (Rebecca Pownall), Stairs wants to bring real violence into the ring. There is an undercurrent
of danger in him, foreshadowing a violent end. Zoe Hunter plays Mary (who moonlights as hard as nails
Whiplash), a single mother trying to get by and do the right thing. Wrestling director Henry Devas’
choreography captures the theatricality of pro wrestling, which all of the performers embraced eagerly and
executed skilfully.
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During the wrestling matches in the ring that takes up most of the pub theatre stage, the characters interact
directly with the audience and encourage them to cheer, shout and root for their favourite. Part pantomime
and part live sporting event, the fights blend these forms of theatre, pulling the audience into a metatheatricality where actors play characters who play more exaggerated characters in the ring. Just as Lardo,
Mary and Stairs transform into a heightened Lardo, Whiplash and Heartbreaker to escape the misery of daily
life in their weekly wrestling nights, the audience are pulled out of their reality as people watching a play and
become spectators of a wrestling match in Scotland. It is rather like living inside their heads, seeing the
otherwise-guarded fantasies instead displayed under the bright lights of a dingy wrestling club. The audience
also sees some of the wrestlers’ rehearsals. Like rehearsals for a play, these scenes come across as intimate
moments that are a privilege to witness.
This is writer Mike Stone’s first full length play and it is an excellent start. Lardo uses an array of theatrical and
cultural influences to expose the inner life of the characters, but more depth would not go amiss in the
characters’ real lives and relationships. A couple of jumps forward in time created ambiguity and suspense but
additional clarity would be welcome and would not have to reveal the missing action. The characters’ need to
escape is one we all can relate to, so the audience willingly plays pretend with the characters.
This is a wonderfully fun play, with genuine belly laughs as well as moments of exposed, raw pain that have
the ability to slide the audience along a spectrum of feelings. There is certainly scope to develop these
characters more and the play would work well in a larger theatre, where the ring is a separate set element
rather than the set itself. This production gives insight into an often-troubled world desperate for a distraction
and temporary escape, even if it means risking life and limb to do so.
Aleks Sierz:
What sound does a body make when it smashes down on the tarpaulin? Come again? Yes, that’s right, you
heard me. What’s that sound? Thud, I suppose. But somehow that four-letter word doesn’t convey the sheer
bone-crunching agony of the wrestling ring. Maybe what it needs is a quick swig of caps: as in THUD. THUD.
THUD. Yes, that’s better. Much better. After all, the sound a big body makes when it hits the floor is enough to
shake the walls of the room.
Especially when, as in Mike Stone’s Lardo at the Old Red Lion theatre, that room is a cauldron — one where
the heat is up and the sweats are on. As we enter this small auditorium we walk into the world of Xtreme
wrestling. We’re in Glasgow, and Lardo is a large, round wrestling fanatic who wants to become a celebrity —
by putting on a comedy performance. His aim is to be hired by Gavin Stairs, the fierce boss of Tartan Wrestling
Madness, and whose other acts include Wee Man, Whiplash Mary (“the top dog around here is not a dog —
she’s a bitch”) and the Vixen. As semiologist Roland Barthes pointed out 60 years ago, modern wrestling is all
show: it’s a fake act where the wrestlers pretend to fight, a morality tale where the noblest wins. Like theatre,
it’s a performance.
But Stairs has another idea: to make it real. He wants his men and women to fight as violently as they can — at
whatever cost. Who cares if a wrestler gets a broken wrist or a detached retina? He doesn’t. So the play
unfolds on an actual wrestling ring, which takes up most of the playing space in the tiny theatre. As the
performers smack into each other, throw each other to the floor and jump on each other, we are the ringside
audience, aware of every thud — sorry, THUD — every smash and every crash. It’s a visceral show, and both
Stairs and Lardo manage to whip up the audience until normally staid theatregoers are chanting “Lar-do! Lardo! Lar-do!” Some people clap, others whistle. A couple whoop. The atmosphere is amazing. But the fighting is
cruel, and as bodies thump into each other, some people cover their eyes.
In breaks from the mayhem, we find out more about Lardo — the “piglet inflated with a handpump” — and
about Stairs. Lardo’s relationship with his childhood sweetheart Kelly, daughter of a retired wrestler, comes
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Lardo Review Pack
under strain when she gets pregnant, and the gobby Stairs is nursing a trauma from the past. At the same
time, he has to fend off Cassie, the local Health and Safety officer, who arrives for an inspection. This is not a
safe sport — it’s a no brainer.
The play asks questions about celebrity, and sets up strong contrasts between image and reality. For example,
Lardo specialises in making YouTube videos of himself, but the reality of his life is quite different to this upbeat
propaganda. Likewise, Stone suggests that live entertainment is always yearning to go too far, that punters
crave excitement and that the relationship between performers and spectators can become a toxic mix which
pushes both towards the unacceptable. As Stairs argues, “People want to see violence.”
But, apart from these familiar ideas, it’s the sensations of the show that you remember. Heat, sweat, rough
rap music and audience chanting. In the ring, there is tensing, grunting, pulling, rolling — and blood. And
THUDs. Amid all the Spandex and Lycra, the crack cast is thoroughly convincing. Take a bow Daniel Buckley
(Lardo), Nick Karimi (Stairs), Laura Darrall (Kelly), Zoe Hunter (Mary), Stuart Ryan (Wee Man) and Rebecca
Pownall (Cassie). Finn Caldwell’s exciting production has a raw energy that makes your spine tingle and your
face sweat — great, crazy stuff.
Web Cow Girl:
With my white trash American background, I have a bit of a soft spot for professional wrestling – although
admittedly it’s due to Mexican wrestling rather than WWF. So I was excited when I heard about the play Lardo,
currently premiering at the Old Red Lion theater. A fat Scottish boy wants to live his dream of being a
professional wrestler? With visions of deep fried Mars bars, acres of spandex, and slamming Irn-Bru in my head,
I eagerly awaited opening night (well, really, the day after, but close enough).
I walk upstairs into the theater space, and bam! It’s been transformed. The walls are painted in primary colors
– including blue for the Scottish flag and red for some lockers – and the entire area has been taken over by a
wrestling wring (with the same blue on the ropes). I wonder how it’s all going to work, because either all of it’s
actually taking place in and next to the ring, or … well, that big square piece obviously isn’t going anywhere. And
as the story opens, we’ve got the protagonist, Lardo (Daniel Buckley, like a round male Judy Garland all ready to
use the barn to put on a show), running around in front of the ring while his girlfriend, Kelly (Laura Darrall),
shoots videos of him on her cell phone. He’s busy promoting himself as a wrestling superstar, although (we
discover) all he really has is a persona and a dream – he’s never spent a minute in the ring. Then suddenly his
girlfriend asks him to be careful and not step in the sea turtle eggs … what? Oh, I get it, they’re supposed to be
outside. As the show evolves, it becomes clear that, for all that it looms, the boxing ring has more flexibility than
I expected, serving nicely both as a living room and a bedroom in other scenes.
But the show and the stage truly come to life when it’s time for Tartan Wrestling Madness!!! (which has to be
spelled with exclamation marks). Lardo believably talks himself into a show – with some help from a health and
safety inspector who bigs him up to “ringmaster” Stairs (Nick Karimi) – and then takes his comic relief spotlight
and turns it into star billing. It all happens pretty fast, but what winds up pulling you in is the development of
personal relationships between the various wrestlers in Stairs’ stable (a crazy seeming blonde named Whiplash
Mary and an old friend of Lardo’s, Wee Man), whose lives become intertwined with Lardo’s. Meanwhile, Stair’s
hunger for money is pulling ahead of any concern whatsoever for the welfare of the people who are effectively
his employees – and the stunts are starting to seem a bit too real.
In fact, the fourth wall really starts to tumble down during this show, as we, the audience, are sucked in to the
drama (who woulda thunk it) of amateur wrestling. The throws seems real, there’s no doubt that bruise on poor
Buckley’s shoulder was real, and before you know it, the entire environment seems real. We are at a wrestling
match and Lardo needs our support. He’s funny, he’s got great stage presence, and you just can’t help wanting
him to win. And before you know it, that feeling is spreading to the whole production. You want Lardo to make
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it out alive, you want him to get things fixed with his girlie, and you want him to actually live up to the plus size
dreams he has for his life. In the end I was pretty amazed – I walked in thinking I was going to be having a laugh
and wound up being caught up emotionally with what was going on. I can’t even blame the Irn-Bru. Lardo is a
knee-twisting, full body slam good time and just a damned good night out. Don’t miss it.
Broadway World:
All the other reviews I've read of this play are prefaced with a little note that the critic isn't a professional
wrestling fan, and they go on to use terms such as "bonkers" or "far-fetched" to describe it.
Well, I am a professional wrestling fan (I've even written a book about it), and 'Lardo', while funny and surreal
in places, is very much rooted in life.
There's our hero, of course, played by the endearing Daniel Buckley, and clearly inspired by the singlet-wearing
YouTube comedy star Grado - right down to the bum-bag slung round his waist.
The promotion he works for, Tartan Wrestling Madness, is becoming more and more hardcore, with use of
barbed wire and scissor blades and unprotected chairshots to the head. (Think that doesn't happen? Look up
the likes of Insane Championship Wrestling, and then wonder if the 'Joker' referred to is at all inspired by Jack
Jester.)
It was coincidental but appropriate that the play opened in a week when the biggest wrestling promotion on
the planet has been dealing with allegations that one of its trainers has been working with novices in a rather
too-tough, too-violent way.
Of course, Lardo's promoter Gavin Stairs (out to make as much money as possible, and not bothered about
who's injured in the process) is absolutely evil - but even his behaviour is grounded in something completely
plausible, as he turned bitter and sadistic after an injury wrecked his own in-ring career.
You can imagine Stairs doing well, too - his nickname The Heartbreaker is perhaps a nod to the Playgirlmodelling 'Sexy Boy' Heartbreak Kid Shawn Michaels, and Nick Karimi is wonderful in the role, all compelling
yet repulsive heel magnetism.
He doesn't give a damn about the wellbeing of his roster, who are desperate to please him - even to the extent
of risking their lives. Wee Man (Stuart Ryan) will do whatever it takes to stay at the top of the card, and that
includes suffering a detached retina and then getting right back in the ring.
The womenfolk are good too - Zoe Hunter is the standout as 'Whiplash' Mary, with Rebecca Pownall
impressive as the too-easily-seduced council officer, while Laura Darrall suffers from a slightly underwritten
role as Lardo's girlfriend Kelly.
The in-ring action is choreographed and performed excellently - the audience are involved from the off,
serving as the rowdy TWM crowd - and particularly impressive is the moment when the play turns on a dime
and the pantomime of pro wrestling descends into real violence. The change in atmosphere is immediate and
palpable.
Yes, occasionally Mike Stone's script veers towards melodramatic - but that's the world of professional
wrestling. The truth is sometimes stranger than fiction, after all.
In fact, the only unrealistic note is struck when Lardo is promised a match against a leading WWE Superstar.
An obsessive fan like him would know that WWE wouldn't allow their talent to compete for another
promotion in that way.
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Still, it's an entertaining first-time effort from Stone, and it's done terrific justice by its cast, impressive
throughout in their characters and in the ring.
Bargain Theatre Land:
Mike Stone’s Lardo, truly is two hours of “Tartan Wrestling Madness”, and barmy, brilliant theatre. The
audience are instantly wrestling converts, sat around the professional ring that has been built at the Old Red
Lion, screaming and clapping to our hearts’ content.
Title character Lardo, is trying to fulfil his dream of being a YouTube sensation, and a wrestler like his late Dad
was. Daniel Buckley, in his leotards, bum bags and merchandise hats, is a thrill to watch. His enthusiasm, as he
bounds off the ropes and squares up to the camera is infectious. It’s impossible not to chant “LARDO, LARDO,
LARDO” as he faces his match in the ring. Buckley also has something incredibly sweet and endearing about
him, so his reflection on times spent with his Dad have you welling up a little.
Wrestling director Henry Devas has done an exceptional job in choreographing the fights. You can imagine the
Batman-esk “POW”, “KAPOW” appearing, as the wrestlers are thrown about the ring, slamming onto the floor,
and being knocked senseless. Lardo’s signature finger waggle, after being pummelled three times, is such a
lovely touch, and something you want to try out again for the first time since Primary School.
Nick Karimi’s performance as Stairs, owner of TWM and former wrestling champ, prior to an attack that left his
knee shattered, is manic and grotesque and he certainly lives up to the name “Heartbreaker”. As and kick-ass
single Mother and the self-confessed bitch of the ring Zoe Hunter is another treat to watch. The
uncomfortable underlying tension between her and Stairs, and her strange rapport with Lardo gives Hunter
the opportunity to show off a whole range of talent.
There are places where the narrative needs sharpening up. Compared to the developed, larger than life
characters of Stairs, Whiplash and Lardo, the other wrestlers and Safety Inspector Cassie seem a bit limp. This
is something that certainly could be rectified, but at present it seems like too many characters are crammed
into one play. There is also an issue with a few underdeveloped story arcs: for example, Lardo’s ex-girlfriend’s
interest in Loggerhead Turtles, and the lack of child support from Whiplash’s baby Daddy. For a show that’s
only just over an hour and a half it doesn’t need so many different ideas going on at the same time.
You will have Lardomania after leaving the Old Red Lion. The script doesn’t quite fulfil the actors’ potential,
but you certainly won’t be disappointed. And if anyone is selling a Lardo hat, send it this way!
Ought To Be Clowns:
“You’ll need a better leotard, that’s for sure”
There’s something genius about the way Finn Caldwell’s production of Lardo co-opts its audience into becoming
willing and whooping wrestling spectators. Whether Haystacks is something Giant to you or something to find a
needle in, there’s such a compelling warmth to the way in which we’re swept up into the atmosphere that you’ll
find it impossible not to be chanting LAR-DO, LAR-DO, LAR-DO… Mike Stone’s play takes us into the realm of
‘Tartan Wrestling Madness’ where the likes of Wee Man and Whiplash Mary entertain Glasgow audiences
hungry for a ruckus, and whose ranks aspiring wrestler Lardo is desperate to join.
What Daniel Buckley’s inspired Lardo lacks in trimness, he more than makes up for in enthusiasm and
unsurprisingly it isn’t long before he seizes his opportunity to get the celebrity he’s long dreamed of. But
girlfriend Kelly (a gently persuasive Laura Darrall) has just found out she’s pregnant, rugged boss Stairs – a former
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wrestler himself – has dreams of upping the ante where the violence is concerned (Nick Karimi giving an
outrageously charismatic performance), even whilst dogged health and safety officer Cassie (Rebecca Pownall)
is determined to make him follow the rules. Stone has each of his characters test their limits and astutely asks
us how far is too far in the name of entertainment.
The eye is definitely drawn to the fully functional wrestling ring that dominates this intimate space but Max
Dorey’s design is full of other inspired touches – the battered lockers, the gaudy but crumbling paintwork, the
work of genius that is the graffiti-covered corner where Stairs’ throne sits (make sure you go and have a good
read, there’s some cracking stuff up there). And the rumbling sound design by Kieran Lucas and Matthew Daw’s
lighting serve as a fine conduit to take Lard from the breathless exhilaration of the wrestling matches to the
quieter drama of the straight scenes.
And away from the spandex and spinebusters, Stone suggests an intriguing portrait of the forces that have driven
people to the escapism of wrestling. Adrift in a world that doesn’t quite know what to do with him, Lardo has
found validation as a minor YouTube celebrity and now he’s aiming for the same IRL, the no-good father of
Mary’s kid isn’t coughing up child support so the second income is coming in handy, and bampot boss Stairs is
gripped by demons of the past. Shards of these stories skirt around the ring, tantalising with their hints of the
wider world rather than giving fully fleshed-out sub-plots.
But there’s much fun to be had in the ring as well as wrestling director Henry Devas has cultivated a hugely
effective sense of exhilaration in the fights he has choreographed and in the fierce, grunting commitment he
has gotten from the cast. To these novice eyes, it looked convincing but more importantly, it always felt right –
the whole production has that tingle of excitement about it that more than overcomes any perceived dramatic
weakness and feels like a welcome breath of Buckfast-scented air on the fringe scene. Well worth the trip
whether you're a fan of wrestling or not.
Partially Obstructed View:
London's fringe theatres seem to have an unofficial, ongoing competition to see who can put the most
ambitious set design into a small room above a pub. The Old Red Lion's latest attempt sees designer Max
Dorey squeeze in a wrestling ring for Mike Stone's debut play Lardo. His father died in a wrestling ring when he
was young but that hasn't put Lardo (Daniel Buckley) off from trying to follow in his footsteps. The scripted,
OTT wrestling of the 1970s is making a comeback in Glasgow thanks to a just-about-legal club called Tartan
Wrestling Madness, and Lardo wants in. He gets his girlfriend Kelly (Laura Darrall) to film him for YouTube
videos challenging the reigning champion Wee Man (Stuart Ryan.) But becoming a local hero is only the start
of his problems, as ruthless promoter Stairs (Nick Karimi) is determined to get some real violence into the
matches to keep the punters interested.
Stone has come up with a fun script on a subject that's pretty niche nowadays, but Finn Caldwell's production
takes it and runs with it, relishing the opportunity to put all the silliness of scripted wrestling onto the stage.
From the opening moments it's obvious the cast are going to happily throw themselves around the stage in the
fight scenes (choreographed by Henry Devas) as well as getting the audience into the spirit of things by
encouraging cheers and boos, Zoe Hunter's Whiplash Mary in particular getting a lot of fun out of antagonising
the audience.
But Caldwell's production is also a detailed one that mines the laughs from the script as well as the physical
comedy - there's always something going on in the background, and there's the requisite fish out of water in
Cassie (Rebecca Pownall,) a health and safety officer willing to overlook the odd Buckfast bottle getting
smashed over the crowd if she can get some alone time with the charming but dangerous Stairs.
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With his selection of dazed facial expressions and boundless enthusiasm Buckley is a likeable lead - he needs
to be, as his character actually isn't: He may be the popular underdog but Lardo's way too self-absorbed to
really care about - even after being separated from Kelly for some time he only says he misses her because he
wants to tell her what he's been up to. But although dipping its toe into a darker side of its characters and
setting, Lardo remains for the most part a raucous comedy, and one that kept a grin plastered to my face more
or less for the duration.
Exeunt:
In the first moments of Lardo the character of Gavin Stairs, played by a bearded and muscular Nick Karimi,
enters the tensioned, roped, padded, and turnbuckled ring that fills almost the full performing space of the Old
Red Lion and, in half-light, he tests the ropes carefully, before performing the familiar wrestling gesture of
running into the ropes, turning at the last second and – oh! – bouncing off them, before doing the same thing
on the other side. For half a second, I thought he was going to end up in an audience member’s lap, but before
reaching the second bounce I knew I was in safe hands, and my grin was plastered across my face, not to shift
for the duration.
I want to write about precision in Metal Rabbit’s spectacular Lardo. Because the heady exhilaration that I felt
for this Scottish-wrestling-themed-riot at the Old Red Lion was exceptional, and I’m fascinated about how they
achieved it. I had big expectations going in – the show’s appearance on the Old Red Lion stage has been hotly
anticipated not in small part because of the hyperactive excitement of the theatre’s Artistic Director (and
Exeunt contributor), Stewart Pringle. Lardo encourages all-caps and chants, and the desire to gabble to your
friends and buy merch (definitely an avenue worth pursuing, Metal Rabbit). It achieves this not simply with
wide-eye fun and enthusiasm – though it has both in spades – but with precise execution of almost every
aspect of the production.
The moves come thick and fast, from Daniel Buckley’s first hilarious one-man performances as Lardo showing
off his skills, straight into tag team matches. ‘Real’ violence and ‘fake’ violence are both on show, and
exquisitely delineated – so the cast elicit laughter with one punch, and then make you wince at the next. Both
are ‘faked’ in the same fashion, but performed with a different quality, by attacker and recipient. We
instantaneously understand that something has shifted. And though the play’s text is very funny in places – as
promoter Stairs woos Health and Safety Inspector Cassie (Rebecca Pownall), or Wee Man (Stuart Ryan) makes
a people’s hero of himself as a Scottish chav, driven by insult and Buckfast Tonic Wine – it is simple and sparse
precisely because wrestling is this play’s emotional core.
The indie romance that bookends the play is flimsy and stands out precisely because every other line in the
play is fit for purpose. Lardo uses it to repurpose the mockery he has received from others and turn it into an
identity, replacing a missing father with a colourful host of freelancers. Wee Man uses wrestling to turn Buckie
culture into a rallying cry and the show-stealing Zoe Hunter expresses the frustration of her character’s
relationship with Stairs in her sadistic wrestling persona Whiplash Mary. Karimi himself manages to play
antagonist with the restless energy of a penniless ringmaster, using and abusing his performers and spurring
them on to nastier violence.
Mike Stone’s writing is screenplay lean, Darren Aronofsky’s The Wrestler meets Filth, and it feels like a ‘Great
British Film’ in the making, but the live-ness is so key to Lardo’s success – the perfect mixture of sport and
story that is live wrestling, the creak of the ropes and the thwap of the floor, the insistent playfulness
alongside the fierce chanting. Lardo is taut like the wrestling ring, and though the character is proud of his size,
the play doesn’t have an inch of fat on it.
A Younger Theatre:
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Lardo pretty much has everything you need for a good, solid chunk of entertainment. It is riotous in humour
and violence, with all its own stunts, never seeming to stop for breath or slow down. There’s no need
for Lardo to hover its foot over the brake because the audience don’t need to think – they are being
consistently walloped with hit after hit of unadulterated entertainment. It’s multi-layered yet unpretentious
and its take home value is unapologetically the sure-fire knowledge that you’ve had a bloody good night, no
more no less. I had to drag a fella to the Old Red Lion kicking and screaming ‘I don’t like theatre, let me play
Fifa!’. A couple of hours later he was kicking and screaming because he didn’t want it to be over, buzzing with
an overflow of adrenaline. Similarly, I didn’t think I liked wrestling but found myself cheering, jeering and
shaking with eagerness to go through it all over again when it was all over.
Lardo (Daniel Buckley) is a chubby wannabe wrestler, who has become quite the YouTube sensation with
videos that hype up his wrestling persona. He certainly looks the part in an ill-fitting, Sharpie-customised
leotard, that snuggly envelops all that dangles, finished off with a bum bag home to a Hulk Hogan figurine. The
doll is the only memento Lardo has left from his father who, legend has it, died in the ring. Spurred on by his
father’s idolised legacy, Lardo is determined to make it in wrestling, beginning with Tartan Wrestling Madness.
It is impossible not to fall hook, line and sinker for Lardo’s unique charm. Buckley is charismatic, and naturally
hilarious. He is effortless in his ability to entertain; every little movement and gesture seems to be effectively
lovable and perfectly imperfect. He’s got a powerful set of puppy dog eyes on him too. It is particularly fitting
in this classic tale of the underdog: a fatherless, bullied, fat kid with a pregnant girlfriend (Laura Darrall), who
wants to make it as a wrestling superstar and who manages it. He wins over his crowd with wiggles and
uncrushable exuberance for his theatrical sport.
The dark side of the plot comes in the form of Stairs (Nick Karimi), an ex-wrestler with a grudge and owner of
Tartan Wrestling Madness. He is manipulative, delusionally self-assured and pathologically unhinged. The
audience is uneasy as the control he has over our reaction becomes more and more blatantly limitless. What
and who will he control next and what damage is he prepared to cause? He has no sense of when to stop and
no desire to either. His feisty female wrestling star Mary, or Whiplash, (Zoe Hunter) has borne the brunt of him
before and is still living with the consequences, without the heart to escape. Hunter’s character, as well as
being in enviable shape, is an extremely empathetic rough diamond. She balances the narrative perfectly.
One of the main attractions of Lardo, besides the man himself, is the fact that the majority of the stage is
taken up by a wrestling ring in all its glory. The cast navigate and bounce off of the ropes adding dimension
after dimension to the performance. It also means that during the wrestling scenes we turn from audience to
spectator, the actors have us in the palm of their hands, keeping our energy high and our emotions on
side. Lardo left me giddy all the way home, beaming as my heart felt like it was about to buzz out of my chest.
Reviews Gate:
Lardo, a fat Glaswegian laddie whose late father was a wrestler, has dreams of following in his footsteps by
joining the Tartan Wrestling Madness run by nasty promoter Stairs. He has persuaded his nice girlfriend to film
him and the results posted on Youtube have created the character he wants to perform in the ring, an
admittedly fat but also endearing and slightly boastful slob.
In due course Lardo gets his chance, loses the girl, becomes a big hit with Scottish audiences and things
happen as he dreams of making it to the big time in the USA.
This is Mike Stone’s first full length play and he has created a tale which holds the attention, and believable
characters, while director Finn Caldwell keeps the action flowing fast and furious. There is an awful lot of
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audience participation – the action takes place inside a wrestling ring which occupies the entire acting space of
the theatre - which gets quite alarming at times.
The actors have been remarkably well drilled by the wrestling director, Henry Devas, and while that proximity
means one can see that occasionally the punches don’t hit home, there is no escaping the fact that the falls
are just like the real thing – choreographed to perfection.
Daniel Buckley is very impressive as Lardo, a sweet young man whose brains do seem to be housed in the
bum-bag he insists on wearing. He has undergone an astonishing transformation since the last time I saw him,
singing away sweetly in Ushers, the Front of House Musical – shaving off his hair for a start.
Zoe Hunter is splendid as the tough lady wrestler, Nick Karimi makes Stairs thoroughly repellent and there is a
nice double turn by Stuart Ryan as Wee Man, a glamour puss boy-wrestler, and as a middle-aged man who
turns out to hold the key to the story, while Rebecca Pownall and Laura Darrall flesh out the other women in
the play effectively.
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