Torvill and Dean, Wayne Gretzky, err, Mickey Mouse – no longer are these the sole members of the ice skating hall of fame. There’s a new pair of blades in town, and they belong to absurdist stand-up Tony Law.
In what must be one of the most ambitious comedy projects in recent years, the Canadian stand-up has joined forces with a bunch of comedian pals and hired out Ally Pally’s ice rink to stage ‘Tony Law and Friends in the Battle for Icetopia’ – an epic comedy show… on ice.
The idea’s been floating around in Law’s head for years, he tells me, but only after being introduced to ever-innovative comic Adam Larter did it start to become a reality. ‘Adam’s a doer,’ says Law. ‘And mental. Adam and I wrote the story and then he wrote the script. I've waited a long time for people to help me make up for my lack of education by putting my ideas together with theirs.’
Law was born in Alberta, and has been skating since he was four years old. ‘I’m a hockey skater,’ says the 47-year-old stand-up. ‘Don’t expect pirouettes. I’m fast, maneuverable and sturdy. Also I need a stick. To you non-Canadians I’m amazing.’ But what about the rest of the 13-strong cast, can they skate too? ‘Probably not,’ admits Law. ‘People who aren’t Canadian, Russian, Swedish, Finnish or Czech all SAY they can skate, but they can’t. But that’s important – this is about me being the best skater.’
The plot of this Icetopian adventure is being kept largely under-wraps, all Law will say is, ‘Stalin’s in it’. But that – together with the image of a dozen comedians flailing about on an ice rink – is all we need to predict this will be the coolest comedy event of the year.