A one-woman show about a feverish love of wrestling, Chokeslam is a new production supported by the WWWC (which sounds like a wrestling company, but it isn’t). You know what you are in for from the moment you step into the ring (AKA the venue) and are confronted by two colossal cardboard cut-outs; one of The Undertaker, and one of Bret Hart. Tegan Verheul then marches in, wearing her own wrestling attire, and launches into a passionate tirade about suplexes and tight spandex. This is only half the story, as it turns out, and Chokeslam moves into an inconsistent but affecting performance about feeling valued by others. 

While Verheul does whistle through some of the terminologies of professional wrestling, it is over in an instant. For the uninitiated it feels about as rushed and sudden an introduction to the sport as Verheul had herself. For wrestling fans however, the way that the Canadian comedian rattles through some of pro wrestling’s highs, lows, and bizarre specifics is a joy. By the end, you will seriously want to watch some of the legendary matches that she talks about with such passion and excitement during her set. 

The counterpoint of Chokeslam is that this same passion and excitement had been lacking from Verheul’s marriage. Through what ends up as a fairly remarkable story, she draws an effective comparison between how the black-and-white storytelling of wrestling is nothing like reality. If anything it makes the appeal of wrestling all the more clear, especially during one sequence where she experiences a wave of belonging and camaraderie while watching wrestling alone in her bathtub. Recalling these experiences still has a visible impact on Verheul, leading her to ask ‘Why did I make a show about this? I could have just talked about wrestling.’ The only letdown is that she snaps herself out of these personal monologues very suddenly, sometimes too much so and causing unwelcome moments of emotional whiplash. 

Verheul’s welcoming and funny personality sometimes sees her excitement run away with her in Chokeslam, which proves to be an erratic but thoroughly enjoyable march through the joys of wrestling. You will never cease to be amazed by what a good tombstone piledriver will do for the soul, as Verheul knows all too well.

Chokeslam is at Assembly George Square – The Crate until Sun 25 Aug 2024 (except Sun 11) at 17:50