Editor-in-Chief Chelsie Henshaw and Deputy Editor Molly Schoenfeld attend Jayde Adams’ comedy show, praising her versatility as a comedian who can deftly move between the serious and the hilarious
Equipped with a glass of white wine and her Serious Black Jumperᵀᴹ, Jayde Adams is touring the country with her latest stand-up show, The Ballad of Kylie Jenner’s Old Face. With over 60 million views on her 2020 Amazon Prime stand-up special and multiple appearances on BBC, Sky and Netflix comedy shows, Adams has achieved critical acclaim thanks to her bold and wonderfully refreshing material. Although we are novices to the comedic scene, we still went into the show with certain expectations, especially after seeing her social media.
Adams is known for her colourful, couture outfits and fabulous silliness
Adams is known for her colourful, couture outfits and fabulous silliness; her past shows included many flashy props that distracted audiences from the real star of the show. However, post-pandemic Adams has departed from her previous style, complaining that ‘people don’t take you seriously enough as a comedian.’ Whilst this at first sounds like a contradiction, Adams makes a compelling point: it is possible to talk about important issues in a way that is accessible to all through the vehicle of humour.
Birmingham’s celebrated comedy venue, The Glee Club, was the perfect environment for Jayde Adams’ approach. Its intimate set-up allowed Adams to personally engage with audience members, often with hilarious consequences (including Adams videoing an explicit Instagram Live on an unsuspecting audience member’s phone after she was caught talking). Additionally, one member was subject to such an intense burst of laughter that Adams completely stopped in her tracks for several minutes.
After a ten-minute delay due to a standoff on the train, Adams blessed us with her presence on stage. In her own true style, we were greeted by the comedian bopping along to ‘Murder on the Dance Floor’ by Sophie Ellis-Bextor wearing a lilac ensemble, accessorised with a purple hat. Before the main segment of the show, Adams undertook a fairly dramatic costume change, going from an embodiment of pastel colours, to the classic business-like fashion of Steve Jobs.
One of our favourite moments was when Adams gave a stunning rendition of ‘Nessun Dorma’ (commenting, ‘That’s quite low, which is impressive because I haven’t got testicles’), with interjections such as, ‘Silencio: that’s Italian for ‘Shut the F**** up.’ Needless to say, we did not expect to see a polished, operatic performance alongside explicit hand gestures, yet this surprise combination only added to our enjoyment of the show.
The performance got its namesake from elements of the ‘Yoof ‘Splainin for the over 50s’ piece of the show. Adams’ witty remarks about twenty-first-century feminism were skillfully interspersed throughout a slideshow of recognisable images of today’s ‘influencers,’ including those of the famous Kardashian-Jenner clan: the audacious women dominating much of today’s narrative surrounding feminism through their inescapable media presence.
Adams was not afraid to show vulnerability onstage, which made for a powerful performance
Adams was not afraid to show vulnerability onstage, which made for a powerful performance. One of the central topics was body image and the ‘Body Positivity’ movement. She shared that she has been the recipient of numerous fatphobic comments, even from staff at a prestigious Parisian restaurant. It was unusual to hear an audience gasping with shock before breaking into hysterical laughter once more, but that is Adams’ style in a nutshell. Through sharing her personal insecurities with the audience, she was at once relatable and real; our laughter all the more meaningful as a result.
The overarching anecdote of the show was Adams’ experience at a performance of Beyoncé’s ‘On the Run II.’ In particular, she describes a moment in the concert when Beyoncé was on all fours with Jay-Z positioned suggestively behind her, and a laser projection of the word ‘Feminism’ on the screen. We will not spoil the surprise of how Adams finishes her show, but it was an unexpectedly powerful moment.
According to Dawn French, ‘Jayde Adams is the 3rd funniest woman in the world. Fact.’ Whilst we cannot objectively confirm or deny this statement, Adams provided us with an evening of laughter and quippy comments. She discussed issues of confidence and compassion, demonstrating that you can make fun of yourself whilst still being a self-confident woman.
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