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Bruce Dessau's rating
Jeff Dunham should stick to the ringtones
By
Bruce Dessau
8 Apr 2009
Great ringtone, shame about the show. Texan ventriloquist Jeff Dunham’s YouTube clips featuring suicide bomber puppet Achmed The Dead Terrorist have had more than 86 million hits and his US tours rival the biggest pop jaunts. Heard a phone bellow “Silence. I Kill You!”? That’s Achmed.
No one goes this global by delivering nuanced humour. Dunham, a Nashville singer lookalike in black shirt and tight trousers, is a broad stand-up with a few stand-out lines, some quirky dolls and plenty of predictable patter. His creations look good but do not always deliver. Visually realistic codger Walter felt like an excuse for clichés about racial stereotypes and stale marriages.
When Achmed appeared, the ovation was rock concert-deafening. With this politically incorrect skeleton Dunham has tapped into an escape valve for our deepest contemporary fears. Whether he could do this straight after an attack is debatable yet last night the crowd was convulsed with laughter. Even this infidel giggled at Achmed’s take on arranged marriages: “Have you ever bought a car without looking at it?”
By comparison, the other puppets lacked punch. I would have liked extra helpings of José the Jalapeno pepper and less of mutant muppet Peanut, who bordered on offensive with his ironic Benny Hill-style oriental accent.
For more skilful ventriloquism there is fellow American Jay Johnson, for a more inventive act there is David Strassman. Dunham’s internet invasion makes him a modern phenomenon but he is also exceedingly old-fashioned.
Details are correct at the time of publication - please check with venue before booking.
Reader views (7)
My GF got us tickets to the Apollo for my birthday and i have been boasting to all my friends about going to his first ever European date.
However, My feelings at the end of the show were mixed. While I spent most of the show laughing enthusiastically, I was disappointed that he didn't have more new material. I wanted to some new stuff and all i was doing was reciting in my head what i was hearing. In Europe, the only place we could have seen Jeff was on youtube before his DVD release..so he knew that we would have seen the gaps he told..so get some new ones.
The major letdown of the evening was definelty Melvin though. As an encore in the states, I believe Jeff usually brings out Bubba J, but for reasons best known to himself, he decided to use Melvin(less american i guess).The problem is that he hadn't used Melvin for a long time back home so he had forgotten the act...as a result he spent the 5 mins of his encore reading the script from a bit of paper, and it was identical word 4 word to the DVD Melvin act. Very poor and I would have preferred he use Bubba or just not done an encore as it ended the evening on a low instead of the high I wanted.
However, I did spend most of the evening laughing out loud, and would see him again..but only once he has some new material!!
- Mark, London, UK, 14/04/2009 11:44
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I wasn't lucky enough to go to this show, but I seen his work before. I love it! I'll be honest and say I have the Achmed ringtone as well, but he is not my only favorite character. All the puppets Dunham uses give us something different to laugh at each time. I love his comedy! He's definitely 5 star quality!
- Lidia Rojas, Hastings, 13/04/2009 21:32
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Seeing Jeff live was one of the singles most fun nights out I have ever had and a dare anyone to not have an absolute blast at one of his shows! If you're lucky enough to get the chance to see Jeff Dunham live, do yourself favor and don't miss your chance!! Jeff-fa-fa!
- Bdawgbaconboy, Los Angeles United States, 13/04/2009 21:10
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I'm so jealous Jeff had shows in Europe but none in New York City 
Next time I am going to hop the pond just to see him and the gang!
- Paulwall, New York City, 13/04/2009 21:10
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Havent seen JD live, but seen plenty of his stuff on youtube. To call him old-fashioned is not really fair considering the guy has been plying his trade for nearly 20 years. In the 90s he was famous enough to make guest appearances on Sitcoms and in commercials.
Yes his Walter stuff is a bit hackneyed for us sophisticated birts with our Mitchell & Webb or Jimmy Carr post-post-modern irony neobigotry (which basically boils down to doing stuff about gays but not really meaning it) but to a typically (and usually mainly white) american audience he goes down a storm.
No, hes not the most technically gifted of vents but his comic timing is to my mind impeccable.
- J., Liverpool, 13/04/2009 01:24
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When we found out that Jeff Dunham would be appearing in Denmark on 11 April, my daughter and I were disappointed, as we would actually be on our way home from London at the time of the show.
Fortunately, we managed to get tickets for the Hammersmith Apollo show instead!!!
My husband and son have just called after the Copenhagen show - they enjoyed THEIR show as much as my daughter (who wasn't a BIG fan before the show) enjoyed the show in London. So I agree with Richard from Kent: BRING JEFF BACK ANYTIME!
Of course true fans had heard some of the punch lines before, but then it only added to the fun when there was suddenly a twist.
Peanut: "I WILL NEVER BLINK" ... ah, my night was complete. :-D
Jeff's and "Guitar Guy's" jokes about Britain were also good - and I have just been told that they thought of a number of good subjects here in Copenhagen Denmark!!
I would DEFINITELY go again!!!
Five stars from us!
- Sally Ann, Copenhagen, Denmark, 11/04/2009 22:04
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We attended his SELL OUT show in London and know that the audience LOVED the show. We haven't laughed so much in a long time, and can't wait for Jeff and the 'little guys' to return to the UK. He has a huge following over here and his humour translates very well with the British audience.
We would give Jeff a five star rating.
- Richard, Sittingbourne, Kent, 10/04/2009 07:05
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