Recent years have seen a resurgence of interest in clowns. Viggo Venn won Britain's Got Talent, Julia Masli has been acclaimed in Edinburgh, London and New York. And now the master returns for the first time in seven years with his landmark work. Slava Polunin's SnowShow, which I first saw two decades ago, is as poignant, poetic and split-your-trousers funny as ever.
The white-haired, red-nosed Russian plays the lead in a series of stunning set-piece sketches. He does not say a word but he does not need to. A shrug of his shoulders or a shuffle of his feet speaks volumes. Sadness, tragicomedy, despair, joy. Polunin is 74 now and while he is as nimble as ever, with a devastatingly precise lightness of touch, this might explain why he frequently lets his younger yellow-clad doppelganger and green-coated troupe take over. Their comedy is slightly more knockabout but equally entertaining. It is infectiously interactive at times. A small warning - front rows should pack a mac or an umbrella.
There are too many highlights to pick out and it would spoil the fun to reveal details. Numerous dreamlike moments stick in the mind. Two sidekicks sailing across the stage on a bed-cum-boat backed by the theme from Chariots of Fire. Tiny houses tugged across the stage like train carriages. Someone engulfed by a giant web. I've already said too much.
