I last saw Gamarjobat as a two-man street show in the earlier years of Christchurch’s World Buskers Festival. It’s one of those acts that has stayed firmly in the memory as something very special, very original, and very funny indeed. [See Erin Harrington’s review from 2013.] So tonight, I look forward to being re-acquainted with this brilliantly clever and imaginative duo.

While I’m not in the least disappointed with the sheer brilliance of this new routine, I’m a little disappointed to find that, as of ten months ago, the Japanese duo split up.  

HIRO-PON continues under the Gamarjobat title with a mix of the old and the new. The exceptionally skilled suitcase mime at the start of tonight’s show reminds me why I have such fond memories of this act. Then, once the suitcase is open, so begins a slick series of magic tricks, some involving a ‘guest’ from the audience, that achieve their hilariously side-splitting comedy from us being able to see how every one of them is done. 

The combination of highly skilful mime, engaging physical comedy and laugh-out-loud slapstick is unrelenting for the first half of the show. Things slow down a little after that, but the sheer inventiveness of the act never lets up. Another hapless guest from the audience assists HIRO-PON in more mime antics and, while the use of a volunteer is extremely effective and even adds to the comedy, I can’t help feeling that the absence of the other half of the act’s duo must have contributed to the nature of this part of the routine. 

The show concludes with material based on musical antics, and an audience guest proves very effective here as well. However, as HIRO-PON creates his multi-track loops on his guitar, there are moments of hiatus in the comedy until the final surprise ending with a truly unexpected, unusual and hilarious performance of ‘Scarborough Fair’. 

Overall, Gamarjobat at last brings us a show in this Buskers Festival that reaches the heights of previous years. But as I walk between shows from one venue to another on this hot summer night, I can’t help noticing the absence of the carnival atmosphere and crowds that have characterised past festivals, let alone the consistently high quality of so many acts that I saw last year.

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