TW & I went to see Sofie Hagen at the Blue Man in Brighton on Tuesday night. It was a rare night out together, and we enjoyed it. M&P took on the babysitting duties, and we caught the train into town.
The Blue Man is on Queens Road just down from the station, so we went straight there. The staff were relaxed and welcoming, and put us at ease straight away. Since we both like a glass of wine we shared a bottle of picpoul which was quite nice. The barman accidentally undercharged us by a couple of pounds and although we offered to pay the difference, he wouldn't hear of it, which was nice.
The Blue Man serves North African cuisine and the decor reflects that. There was a Moroccan feel to the place; it is small and cosy and the table layout encourages a communal experience. We sat for few minutes upstairs until the barman announced that downstairs was open and we could go down.
Downstairs holds about 30 people so it was a very intimate gig. The audience were a diverse bunch, there were older folks, mostly women, a couple of cross dressers/transsexuals, and just a handful of men. Again the communal experience was encouraged, with long benches down the sides, and the Moroccan feel continued. They had also decorated the ceiling with 7" vinyl singles which was nice.
Sofie's set was good, given that it was an Edinburgh preview, so a few rough edges were to be expected. A few years ago I saw a preview by Richard Herring and that needed much more polish. TW & I both properly laughed and I think everyone enjoyed it.
I hadn't seen Sofie before; I was introduced to her when she was interviewed by Richard Herring on his RHLSTP podcast. I listened to her "Comedians Saying Stuff" podcast, which I enjoyed. Going to see a full stand-up show was a bit of a punt but it was worth it. And if I see anything even remotely interesting at The Blue Man, I'll probably go - it was so nice.
After Sofie's show we went back upstairs and had a shared platter of food and played backgammon. The food was delicious, it was a very relaxed affair. We did consider seeing a second show, but decided we couldn't do that to M&P, so we headed home. While we were preparing to leave, I put on my hoodie and accidentally elbowed one of my neighbours in the head - that's how snug the venue is. Of course I apologised and no harm was done (I think), and we headed up to the station.
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