FEST ****
CRITIC'S CHOICE
Les Enfants Terribles live up to their name, choosing for their subject the 'immaculate' conception of a foetus claimed
by Gabriel to be the Second Coming and by Lucifer to be the spawn of the Devil. The comic absurdity is undercut by
the political and metaphysical implications for the unwilling vessel Mia, a dominatrix no less.
It is a testament to the all-round excellence of the performance that after only five minutes the entire audience (including
the fragile ones) are rapt and laughing out loud. Theological questioning, puerile humour and good old-fashioned
story-telling are juggled more than ably by a talented cast as they storm through a witty and intelligent, lightning quick
script to a revelatory ending: whether she is carrying good or evil, an apocalypse is imminent. Soliloquies engage the
audience throughout and there is no time to wish to be back in bed or even to pause for breath as the play strives for a
conclusion that does justice to all its elements. The breaking of the fourth wall continues as the characters muse on the
most suitable ending to such a momentous event, which, when it comes, doesn't disappoint.
Suzanne Black

THREE WEEKS ****
God and religion came crashing down to earth in this quick-witted cavorting comedy. Mia is pregnant despite not having
had sex. Is this the Second Coming or Satan's spawn? The play delves deeper into the messy possibilities of Mia's
pregnancy and a question looms: is God outdated in this changing world? The humour deliciously teases - the cast seem
like a family gently but firmly mocking the younger sibling (God) who has let his ego run away with itself.
'Immaculate' oozes cheeky charm but also quiet confidence that humanises religion as a deeply flawed construct, so too
further humanising the living, revealing the courage that comes in making independent choices. Why choose God as
leader when we can be leaders ourselves?

UK THEATRE WEB ****
You're young free & single and haven't had sex for eleven months, then one day you wake up pregnant and the
Archangel Gabriel is at the door claiming parentage. From an excellent masked chorus opening, this is a delight in using
& abusing theatrical styles with a healthy religious scepticism. The key is the pace - don't blink or you'll miss a
hilarious line. The laughs come thick, subtle but very, very fast. All the performances are strong, but Melanie Gray leads
with incisive timing and delivery. Christopher Mellows revels in the incongruities of a modern day angel trying to
justify god moving in mysterious ways. It's a challenge to know where to look as the acting off-line is excellent. No
time to wonder how they will reach a conclusion, but this talented cast guide you to a logical, ludicrous end. Be
prepared to go back again to catch the gems you missed.
Derek Benfield

BRITISH THEATRE GUIDE ****
Mia hasn't had sex since she split up with her boyfriend about nine months ago. Or has she? She might just have had a
one night stand with arch-nerd Gary Goodman, but she can't believe she'd sink that low! Anyway, she's pregnant. An
immaculate conception. But is the baby the second coming or the spawn of the devil? Gabriel says it's the first: Lucifer
says it's the second.
Immaculate is hilarious. From the opening with a masked chorus, through the arrival of a bumbling old Archangel
Gabriel and the intervention of a petulant Lucifer, to the obnoxious and totally self-centred ex and the incredibly boring
Gary, the play is a bundle of laughs.
Melanie Gray gives a great performance as the feisty Mia, leading an excellent cast who never let the pace of Oliver
Lansley's play (which, incidentally, he also directed) slacken. Well, how would a modern woman react to being told
she's been impregnated by God without her knowing it, without even a by-your-leave? Fireworks are inevitable!
In a Fringe which is filled with comedies, this has to be one of the funniest.
Peter Lathan

HAIRLINE ****
Over the last few years, Oliver Lansley and Les Enfants Terribles have been building up quite a following with the
refreshingly fun and humourous plays and it seems like their latest offering, Immaculate, will garner them even more
followers.
Centred around one women and her surprise pregnancy, Immaculate is a tongue-in-cheek look at Western religion and is
undoubtedly Lansley's most rounded, mature work to date. Like all of their previous performances, Immaculate features
a strong, talented cast. The overall delivery is good but Christopher Mellows, as a slightly confused Gabriel, and Matt
Ian Kelly, as the camp Lucifer, really do stand out in this imaginative paternity piece.
Immaculate is a tightly written, extremely funny comedy that will certainly tickle your ribs and brighten up your lunchtime.
Richard Biggs

SCOTSGAY ****
Oliver Lansley's Immaculate imagines a modern lass who discovers herself to be six months pregnant a year after she
last had sex. In comes a guy who looks very like William Golding - But, he is no Lord of the Flies, indeed, he is an
Angel Gabriel who clearly has no control over God's flies! Being a modern lass, on being told that her foetus is 'one of
ours - a divine' there is no enraptured acceptance, but rather an angry reaction to her body being used without her
permission.
Her 'ex', an old flame, her female friend who hates babies and an extremely camp Lucifer who lays claim to the child
all add to the stew.
This is a most entertaining and thought-provoking comedy, full of great lines and where the timing is excellent. Highly
recommended.
Tony Challis

THE STAGE
As the name of his company suggests, Oliver Lansley of Les Enfants Terribles has actually found that winning formula
of talent, charm and absolute irreverence - think, really cool top of the class kid. As a result, for the fourth year running,
he has a hit show and the audiences doubled with laughter at a drop of a hat - or a skull mask, as the case might be.
In a strange fusion parodying Berkoffian Greek tragedy and dramatising twentysomethings attitudes to parenting, his
latest piece is about a modern day Virgin Mary - a single student of marine biology with a secondary career as a mistress
- who finds herself a victim of immaculate conception and besieged by Angel Gabriel, ex-boyfriend and Lucifer.
Lansley's writing is pacey and clever, innately and ever so subtly reminiscent of Coward, yet more overtly aspiring
towards the TV canon. The show is graced by almost immaculate performances too.
Duska Radosavljevic

METRO
Acclaimed theatre group Les Enfants Terribles returns to the Fringe with a brand new show, which is a bit like a French
sexual comedy but without the sex... the production still hugely entertaining... it has all been executed with the necessary pizzazz to keep the spectator on the edge of his seat.
Genuinely a laugh a minute, with some real strokes of comic genius, Immaculate should ensure you forget all your
troubles for an hour.
Andrew Richardson

THE ARGUS
A brilliant show with machine-gun dialogue which could have come out of a Howard Hawks screwball comedy from the
forties, delivered by an excellent cast.
Charles Whitney

NEWBURY WEEKLY NEWS
Les Enfants Terribles 'Immaculate' written and directed by Oliver Lansley, takes the paradox of immaculate conception
as the starting-point for a gloriously absurd look at issues surrounding religion, sex and relationships... it is so
uproariously funny... The play is cleverly staged and very well acted... I can hardly wait to see this excellent company's
next production.
Jonathan Bacchus

CAMDEN NEW JOURNAL
Oliver Lansley's laugh-out-loud comedy presents an unlikely immaculate conception and how it would be perceived by
us; a generation of non-believers. Our modern-day attitudes to religion, and faith more generally, come under the
spotlight here.
The star of the show has got to be Sarah Kirkland as Mia. Her frank and realistic portrayal of a confused young woman
is touching and easy to relate to yet her fiery character remains provocative throughout. Her penultimate monologue
discusses the invasion of her body with a baby she does not want. References to the violation of her human rights and
how this amounts to rape are sobering but justified and comprise the most powerful moments in the play.
Intermissions from a masked Greek chorus add diversity and the laughs on-stage are abundant.
Alice Klein