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Promotional art for Viva Forever
Cover image credit: Promotional image via Prime Video

Viva Forever

Glenn Wool

Vimeo · 2020 · 59 min

A veteran Canadian comic tackles domestic life and free speech.

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Glenn Wool paces the stage looking like a road-weary trucker in a faded band tee and leather waistcoat, using his booming, rich baritone to mount a defense of free speech that is far more thoughtful than the typical culture-war ranting. The core of his argument is a plea to let things you dislike simply exist, a philosophy he puts into practice by playing the Spice Girls song of the same title multiple times before the show.

Released in 2020 by Stand Up! Records and directed by Barry Castagnola, the hour finds the Canadian-born expat nesting in the United Kingdom and preparing for fatherhood. This shift in his personal life brings a newfound focus on the passage of time. He explains his strategy of pretending certain artists died early (such as Eddie Murphy and Prince) to shield his younger partner from their late-career declines, contrasting them with Freddie Mercury, who managed to die before entering any self-indulgent musical phases.

Wool also wrestles with historical hangovers, noting how European politics and family lineage still dictate modern battle lines, from his Irish grandmother holding a grudge over The Troubles to Germany outshining the United Kingdom on refugee humanity. The material was originally developed during a run at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe at the Monkey Barrel venue.

The set list

4 bits

  1. King of Time

    Exploiting the age gap with his younger partner to edit pop culture history, pretending artists like Prince, Eddie Murphy, and Meat Loaf died before releasing lesser later work.

  2. Tolerance and the Spice Girls

    Proposing that the Spice Girls song 'Viva Forever' remains the ultimate tool for tolerance in modern society while struggling to get it out of his head.

  3. Germany, Refugees, and WWI

    Observing how Germany now outshines the UK in extending humanity to refugees while questioning historical motives, alongside family allegiances during The Troubles.

  4. The closer (spoiler). Show it

    The Schumacher Incident closer

    A caustic, dark routine addressing former Formula One driver Michael Schumacher.

How it plays

Tone
Caustic, dark, reflective, and touching.
On stage
Globe-trotting bon vivant and semi-professional roustabout who reveals his dark side and foibles.
Pace
Theatrical and operatic stage pacing, stalking the stage in delight and disbelief.
About
Becoming an expectant father and settling down, Age gap in relationships and differing generational reference points, Revising pop culture history, European history, refugees, and The Troubles, Offense in comedy and boundaries

What the critics said

Hailed by The Serious Comedy Site as a comedy gem combining touching autobiographical stories, top-tier callback structure, and sharp, caustic social commentary.

In the room: The Glasgow audience was highly responsive and open, acting almost like a backup band to the comic.

Summed up from reviews, articles and listings. Sources: rottentomatoes.com, pro.imdb.com, standuprecords.com, theseriouscomedysite.com, en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com, comedy.co.uk, nytimes.com, variety.com.

Backstory

Becoming an expectant father and settling down in the UK with a partner roughly ten years his junior, prompting reflections on aging, pop culture, and modern sociopolitical malaise.

Details

Released
Runtime
59 min
Where
Vimeo
Director
Barry Castagnola
Honors
The Serious Comedy Site 2020 Top 10 Contender (Top 3)
Topics
Before
Creator, I Am But a Pawn (2019)

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