Premier Arts & Entertainment Coverage

Joann Condon: Little Boxes – 2026 Adelaide Fringe

March 18, 2026

Review by Markus Hamence – Joann Condon: Little Boxes – Performance date:Wednesday 18 March 2026. Tandanya/Gluttony, Adelaide, South Australia.

Fed up of people putting you in boxes? When she was young Joann Condon (Little Britain) was written-off, body-shamed, looked down on for being working-class, and seen as only fit for the dullest desk job. Partly thanks to an 80s pop icon she learned to defy expectations, building a screen and stage career as a comedian and actor.

Joann’s cathartic, funny and touching award-winning solo show ‘Little Boxes’ is about breaking free, discovering your true worth, living life to the full – and a deep love of tea. Little Boxes has delighted audiences and attracted critical praise in the UK and Adelaide, and is back in 2026 after sell-out shows at Edinburgh Fringe.

Allow me to unpack the ‘boxes’…

There’s a certain kind of Fringe show (Adelaide or other) that doesn’t shout for your attention with glitter, glitz and sequins but ends up owning it completely anyways – and Little Boxes is exactly that. Starring UK actor Joann Condon, whose on-screen credits include Little Britain, Skins and The Office, this is a heart-felt ‘life lived’ masterclass in stripped-back storytelling that trades the spectacle for substance and lands every freakin’ f🥰cking moment with precision and heart.

“(Little Boxes) lands every freakin’ f🥰cking moment with precision and heart…”
Markus Hamence

From the second Condon steps on stage, there’s an approachable ease about her – an unforced, lived-in presence that immediately dissolves any barrier between performer and audience. It’s not hard to see how her screen career has shaped this kind of command. There’s timing here, sharp and instinctive. There’s character work, even in the smallest gestures. And most importantly, there’s truth. The kind that doesn’t feel performed, but remembered, distinctively remembered.

The concept of Little Boxes is deceptively simple, but what unfolds is anything but. Through a series of stories, reflections and emotional checkpoints, Condon unpacks the ‘boxes’ we’re all placed into – class, identity, body image, expectation, self-worth – and the ones we unknowingly build for ourselves. Each layer reveals something more personal, more confronting, and ultimately more liberating. It’s clever writing, but never showy. It’s grounded in real experience – and that authenticity cuts through in every line.

What elevates the show is its rhythm. Condon knows exactly when to let a joke breathe and when to land a moment of emotional weight. One minute the room is filled with laughter – big, knowing, cheering, relatable laughter – the next it shifts into something quieter, more reflective and tear inducing. Those transitions are seamless, never jarring. It’s a delicate balance, but she handles it with the confidence of someone who truly understands both comedy and vulnerability. THIS is what make Condon endearing to watch on stage and connective, like we’re sitting down with her over a cup of tea, English brew of course.

There’s also a rawness here that feels incredibly current. In a culture still obsessed with labels and quick definitions, Little Boxes challenges that instinct head-on. It doesn’t preach or push – it simply lays the reality out there and trusts the audience to sit with it. That’s where the show finds its edge. It’s not just entertaining; it’s quietly provocative, asking you to reconsider the boxes you’ve accepted without even realising. A ‘tap on the shoulder’ if you like.

Condon’s storytelling style is conversational, almost intimate. It feels like you’re being let in on something personal rather than watching a constructed narrative. And yet, beneath that casual tone is a tightly crafted piece of theatre. Every beat feels intentional. Every story serves a purpose. There’s no fluff and filler here – just layered, thoughtful, emotionally intelligent performance.

“There’s no fluff and filler here – just layered, thoughtful, emotionally intelligent performance…”
Markus Hamence

And while the themes run deep, the show never becomes heavy. There’s too much wit, too much warmth, too much resilience driving it forward. Condon has a gift for finding humour in places you wouldn’t expect, and it’s that humour that keeps the show buoyant. It’s not about escaping the difficult stuff – it’s about facing it with honesty and, at times, a cheeky grin.

What lingers most is how universal it all feels. You don’t need to share Condon’s background to see yourself reflected in her stories. With a good nod and bow to Boy George, the specifics may be hers, but the emotions are shared. That’s the magic of Little Boxes – it starts as one woman’s narrative and expands into something far broader, a mirror held up to the audience in the most disarming way.

There’s also something to be said about the confidence of a performer who doesn’t rely on excess. No overblown staging, no distractions – just a performer, a story and the willingness to go there. In a festival packed with high-energy spectacle, Little Boxes stands out by doing the opposite. It leans into the stillness, into honesty, into connection – and in doing so, becomes one of the most quietly powerful shows in the program. Condon is a STAR. She has made it.

“Condon, armed with a career spanning Little Britain, Skins and The Office, delivers a performance that is as sharp as it is sincere…”
Markus Hamence

Wrap-up: Little Boxes is the kind of Fringe experience that sneaks up on you – funny, fearless, and deeply human. Joann Condon, armed with a career spanning Little Britain, Skins and The Office, delivers a performance that is as sharp as it is sincere. It’s storytelling that doesn’t just entertain – it resonates, lingers, and gently challenges you to step outside the boxes you didn’t even know you were in.