Alex Horne: Monsieur Butterfly is a very unusual comedy show. Whilst stand-up comedy could usually be described as ‘someone standing still telling jokes for an hour, and maybe swinging their arms around a bit if they’re Michael McIntyre’, Horne’s show is probably better described as an obstacle course DIY extravaganza with some funny bits in it. Has that made it clearer? No? Let me explain.

Horne spends the entirety of the show building a Rube Goldberg machine, or, as he describes it, an adult version of the children’s board game Mousetrap, in which an excessively complicated contraption is built in order to catch a mouse. Using ladders, pieces of wood and piping, and random objects from his childhood, Horne creates this weird and wonderful contraption whilst talking us through his journey into inevitable adulthood, and his current struggle of trying to stop that adulthood from happening.

The great thing about Horne’s constant construction process is that it gives both Horne and the audience something to fall back on (though hopefully not literally). It’s always a bit of a risk going to an hour long stand-up show: there is so much silence to be filled by one person and there has to be such a high level of trust from the audience that the comedian can fill it. But Horne escapes this tension by constantly working; breaths between jokes are filled by his putting a pepper grinder on top of a tower of Jenga, or a bowling ball on top of a traffic cone. The suspense of how on earth this thing is going to work keeps the energy level in the room high, and when the machine is finally used, the payoff is incredible from such a long build up.

I couldn’t tell you a single joke that Alex Horne made, and yet I laughed pretty much constantly. Audience members who are used to gag-filled comedy might find this more absurd and conversational style a bit hard to connect with, but I personally found Horne’s comedy musings to be pitch perfect. Managing to be both self-deprecating and also quietly confident, Alex Horne’s persona is of a man for whom age has caught up with him too quickly, and his want to use his unwanted grown-up manliness to build a giant adult version of a very silly child’s game is certainly relatable. The intense desire that you feel at the end of the show for his machine to work mirrors the desperate desire of the audience to be able to go back to that childhood state of wonder and creativity, so much so that the final few moments really is edge of your seat stuff. Confident comedy alongside a wildly ambitious and clever concept make this a very unique and hilarious show, and one which you certainly won’t be forgetting in a hurry.

Alex Horne: Monsieur Butterfly plays at Soho Theatre until 16 May. For tickets and more information, see the Soho Theatre website.