Festival Of The Spoken Nerd Vs Professor Elemental

Brighton Science Festival curated this unique union, and the Spoken Nerd part of the evening was a joyous occasion, taking up at least two thirds of the running time in fact. The trio’s giddy enthusiasm for maths, science and a lot of fire was inspiring, a successful mix of being informative and truly entertaining. A highlight involved music wave ‘cymatics’ which translated on stage into hypnotic patterns of cous cous on a steel square, a curious marvel. An elegiac song for the doomed spacecraft Philae was funny and poignant whereas a mathematic investigation into the wonders of parabolas was fascinating.

Professor Elemental’s part didn’t work quite so well in the Old Market setup however. His idiosyncratic brand of hip hop/science/posh English gentleman fusion was funny and lyrically deft, but he struggled to gain momentum with a seated crowd when his act is more suited to rowdy standing gigs. Although Elemental was charming and eloquent, the programme was a little disjointed. More preparation time could have perhaps resulted in a more successful double bill.

The Old Market, 18 February 2016

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