In Puppet Asylum, now showing at the Baxter Theatre in Cape Town, the puppets make their first public appearance since losing the plot several months ago and are under the vigilant care of the unseen Dr Guang Guang and Nurse "Take no kak" Gertrude. Koch no longer has any real control over the wily puppets who've destroyed his career.
Political analyst Chester Missing is an arrogant and stubborn pain in Koch's arse, who tells it as he sees it; this puppet has no censor whatsoever and, while his words sometimes make you cringe, he's a much-needed breath of fresh air for SA comedy. He had a bash at Zuma and, to Chester's credit, he was able to ramble off Zuma's wives names in one breath - pretty impressive for a puppet; pretty impressive for a ventriloquist.
Hillary, the saucy goose in a sexy red dress, has some alcoholic tendencies. She quickly took a liking to Cupcake, aka Justin Nurse, one of the familiar faces in the audience. She's a bold and bombastic cabaret artist, looking for her big break, as well as the ardour of a real man ...
"Love is a rebellious bird that no man can tame!" proclaimed Hillary; alas Cupcake wasn't too interested in her advances.
Ronnie is a freckled ginger, but that isn't the worst of it; he's a green baby with a weak bladder. It's weird that one would make an emotional connection with this abomination of nature, but many in the audience, myself included, empathised with Ronnie when Koch put him to bed. I don't blame Koch, naked Ronnie was obsessed with vagina and peed on the audience! He's not as funny as Chester or Hillary, but there's something endearing about the gingerling.
The overall irony becomes twofold in the end when all is revealed in a shocking exposé by Chester Missing!
While I felt slightly uncomfortable for those in the audience who were victims of harsh insult comedy, I guess it comes with the territory - you have to make sure that you wear your thickest skin for a comedy show. Koch's Puppet Asylum brimmed with creativity; his material is current, relevant and he's got that no-holds-barred attitude that will see him, no doubt, on a bigger stage in future.
Directed by Heinrich Reisenhofer, Puppet Asylum is currently showing at the Baxter Theatre until 28 January 2012.
