Ventriloquism is a largely neglected form of comedy; while there are plenty of stand ups, combining that with voice throwing and puppetry is a whole different level of skill.
In his latest touring show Jaw-drop Paul Zerdin clearly shows why he won America’s Got Talent, ticking all the boxes and then some.
The comedy is at the marginally adult edge of end of the pier, with jokes that will fly over younger kids heads but entertain the adults, along with a healthy helping of deliberately daft jokes and the odd groan-inducer.
Zerdin’s ventriloquism is masterful, including beatboxing and humming simultaneously, cute details like varying the volume as his main puppet Sam sways around his pedestal seat, and – in some filmed clips – tormenting shoppers with vocal tricks like mimicking pleas for help from inside a postbox.
Together they combine into some extremely entertaining routines: an apparently accidental drop of a puppet leads to a sketch where a knock on the head leads to the voices going wrong, swapping around between puppet and master. The concept is sharp, the delivery superb.
At times he does seem to be almost more interested in entertaining himself – a conceit where he provides a running commentary on his life, and then the gig, rises (or descends) to meta levels; a talking ice cream routine is surreal, and seemingly needs an in-depth knowledge of Martin Scorsese’s works – but when you’re switching from Las Vegas to the Norwich Playhouse, you can forgive some self indulgence.
It’s also easy when there is such talent on show. The finale made stars of Richard and Jen from Hainford, wearing Zerdin’s robot jaws that allow him to appear to control their mouths and put words in their mouths.
The real skill though is Zerdin’s, with sharp routines, technical prowess, and an impeccable performance.
- Paul Zerdin: Jaw-drop is touring nationally, including West Cliff Theatre, Clacton on 19 October 2025 and The Apex, Bury St Edmunds on 26 October 2025.
