You'll recognise the pratfalls in Ye-Gam Theatre Company's latest slapstick comedy show, Jump. A household visitor prompts a tidying spree and a would-be lover is tested for his virtues, developing hell-raising fighting ability when he removes his specs.
Elsewhere, a courtship waltz turns into a fight and a set of burglars blow their cover - a skit that turns into a superb rip-off of the computer-generated scenes in The Matrix.
Jackie Chan's early film career reinvigorated slapstick's big-screen presence by combining great comedic skill with gymnastic and acrobatic aplomb (just watch Chan's brilliant Drunken Master for proof). So it is with Jump, where the slapstick stage manifestation has been turned into something far beyond the domain of clowns and vaudeville theatre.
Ye-Gam hail from Korea and have spent five years training for this show that also includes accomplished acrobatics, martial arts such as Tae Kwon Do and Tae Kyun and a lot of flips and somersaults. And it shows in their synchronicity, their pacing (it's not all fast - slapstick is equally funny in slow motion) and their ability to whip up a crowd despite speaking little English.
After they've finished in Hackney, the troupe is heading off on an international tour that is already booked to return to London at the Peacock Theatre in February. It's testament to the fact that they've raised the bar for a comic style that was looking for its own spotlight once again.
Until Sat, Hackney Empire, 291 Mare Street E8,
7.45pm, Sat mat 2.30pm, £12 to £22.50, £10 to £20.50 concs. Tel: 020 8985 2424. www.hackneyempire.co.uk
Ye Gam Theatre: Jump
