Fringe review: Ismael Loutfi reflects on Islam in fantastic comedy

The National

11 hours ago

US stand-up comic and comedy writer Loutfi's story would be quite unbelievable if you saw it written down, or even read to you. Heavenly Baba follows his upbringing in Florida, and experience with a father who was to say the least, very committed to his Muslim faith. Loutfi's tale involves a marriage at just 17-years-old, a police raid on his father's clinic, diving into leftist politics and running into his childhood comedy hero, only for the celebrity to be Me-Too'd shortly afterwards. During portions of the performance, my jaw hung open in amazement at the life Loutfi has lived, and its unexpected twists and turns.
With photo references, Loutfi shares how his dad transformed his car into a moving advertisement for Islam, complete with brilliant quotes like "Buddhism is Atheism (yoga ok)" and "it is not gay to love friend". This slideshow element of the show is incredibly effective, taking us deep into Loutfi's childhood. The comic uses multimedia and prop elements expertly throughout the performance. Another favourite is the recognisably intense Dune music playing as he jokes about white people pronouncing Arab names correctly. His map-drawing section is also charming and engaging, even if he does miss Orkney and Shetland off. To delve deeper into the physical on-stage work would be to spoil the show, but there's no doubt that these elements blend seamlessly into the overall work.
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These elements are not just for comic effect. The final third of the show sees Loutfi take more of a serious tone, with lighting used impressively to reflect this shift. In this segment Loutfi provides thought-provoking reflections on religion, as well as what it means to represent your community on stage – and how it feels when you feel you've let them, and yourself down. It explores familial connection, and whether children can truly know their parents, with a particularly moving multimedia section on this bringing me close to tears.
Loutfi has excellent jokes and seriously exceptional storytelling chops. In the hour of Heavenly Baba I was transformed to Florida in the early noughties. I was given insight into a community I have never been a part of. I went on a real emotional journey with him.
The hour is tightly written and backed up with intelligent audio/visual elements. Loutfi's charm and ability to conjure an image makes it hard to take your eyes off him. If there is any real critique here it's that he never feels 100% comfortable on stage, awkwardly pacing and looking at the floor more than he needs to. There is also a feeling that Loutfi does not want to veer off course of the prepared routine. Some pleasantries at the beginning or end would not go amiss.
All of this said, Loutfi's Heavenly Baba is not to be missed. It is the most complex exploration of religion and family that I have seen at this Fringe, which is something to be said for a comedian who claims he sees everything in black-and-white. I hope he returns next year in a much larger venue, performing to the much larger crowd he deserves.