Category: Melbourne Fringe 2014

The Moon In Me

By Lisa Clark

Dylan Cole decided on a powerpoint-supported Dave Gorman-style adventure for this self-imposed experiment, where he reads his Horoscope at the end of each day for a year and sees whether it reflects the events in his life. Unfortunately or fortunately he chose to follow the Murdoch Empire’s waffly wanker – ahem…sorry – “astrologist”: UK resident Jonathan Cainer to follow.

Calling Cainer a great astrologist is a bit like saying Bolt is a great journalist as Dylan soon discovers with columns repeated verbatim on different dates and occasionally making little sense. Dylan never questions Cainer’s abilities however and amusingly plows on with trying to relate the horoscopes to his own life experiences, blaming his own inadequacies when Cainer’s column fails him.

The floor is strewn with pages of newspaper reminding us of that old adage of yesterday’s newspaper becoming tomorrow’s birdcage lining. Dylan also has a few books lying about that were part of his failed attempt to learn the art of astrology. Not surprising as it would be like trying to quickly learn a new language and Dylan has been too busy. He’s had a pretty tumultuous year to deal with while going through this experiment and takes us through these life events and what Cainer’s column had to say about them at the time. He makes some interesting discoveries and has some amusing insight into human nature and his own.

Dylan Cole is an engaging, humorous storyteller and has written a sweet and funny show about personal discovery with astrology as an over arcing theme if you will. This is not really the show to come to if you are keen on or want to learn anything about astrology or even if you want to see it thoroughly debunked and vilified. Dylan does however provide some insight and pokes gentle fun at horoscopes and people who take it too seriously.

The Moon In Me is on at The Tuxedo Cat at 9:45pm until September 28

http://www.melbournefringe.com.au/fringe-festival/show/the-moon-in-me/

Andy & Nellie’s Secret Second Family Variety Show

By Colin Flaherty

A Biscuit Heiress and a Quoits Champion find their marriage on the rocks. Rather than attending counselling, they slug it out at The Concerned Billionaire’s Club AGM where the Champs’ bastard children perform in an attempt to change his wifes’ mind not to leave him. The result is the most unlikely and creative framework for a variety show imaginable.

Some beautifully insane characters were created to inhabit this elaborate world that was so much more than just linking material for some guest performers. You often found yourself patiently sitting through an act just to get back to the main story. Nellie White portrayed the unemotional, power crazed Heiress with wonderful detached pomposity while Andy Matthews played the neutered patriarch who relayed the majority of the plot exposition through lengthy monologue. A particular stand out was Dave Warneke as the slightly backwards son of the couple. He threw himself into the role wholeheartedly and nothing was too demeaning for a joke, no matter how minor the pay off, which had everyone waiting to see what he would do the next time he stepped on stage.

Through all the silliness, bad puns and exaggerated melodrama there was some thinly veiled social satire at work here but nothing too heavy to take away from the lightness of the show. The staging of the show was brilliantly done in a slightly homemade yet elaborate fashion. We saw some wonderfully oversized props, a stoic feathered friend and a feat of stage engineering to wrap up a seemingly minor plot point. We were fully immersed in this strange yet familiar world from the get go.

The line up of Illegitimate Children (ie. Guest performers) changes every night. On the night I attended the ‘Children’ were Stuart Daulman, Gillian Cosgriff and Oliver Clark. If there was one niggling shortfall it was that these guests weren’t fully integrated into the universe created by the core cast. They made a passing reference to being Andy’s offspring but essentially just did their usual act. This was probably the only brief given to them about being on this variety show but an act tailored to the overall show would have been a nice touch.

As a variety show this is a great hour of entertainment. Add in these crazy characters and their story arc and this show is elevated to a must see event.

Andy & Nellie’s Secret Second Family Variety Show is on at The Tuxedo Cat at 7:15pm until September 28.

http://www.melbournefringe.com.au/fringe-festival/show/andy-nellie-s-secret-second-family-variety-show/

5 reasons to see The Impossible Showcase, by the Three Toms

1: IMPOSSIBLE TALENT: Award winners, out of towners, local favourites, we lay in wait at their favourite bars, and emotionally blackmailed them into joining up. For you.

2: IMPOSSIBLE ACTS: They’re doing the things they’ve always wanted to try: shadow puppets, musical science-fiction, alternative endings; comedy gold you’ll see NOWHERE ELSE.

3: IMPOSSIBLE UNIQUENESS: If you miss it, it’s gone. Every night is one-of-a-kind, and most of these acts will never be repeated. You’ve already missed Adam Knox’s Conversation with a Hairdresser, and James McCann’s Open Letters to Scumm. Don’t miss Sarah Jones’ Saddest Stories, or Mitch Alexanders Heavy Metal Clowning.

4: IMPOSSIBLE DEALS: Come once, and your ticket will get you half price entry on every other night. Because we want you to see it ALL.

5. IMPOSSIBLE HOSTS: Tom Lang (Love Factually) and Tom McLean (Ghosts Are Real), present the whole ridiculous shebang, with their particular breed of irreverent shenaniganery.

For more info and tickets:

Toby Halligan: Tobylerone

By Noel Kelso

If, like myself, you are a regular attendee of Melbourne comedy rooms you will have at some point encountered the routines of one Toby Halligan, a razor-witted comic with a topical turn of mind and an appetite for the political. He is one of the conspirators behind monthly political comedy room, Political Asylum and also writer for Channel Ten’s ‘The Project’ so comes with plenty of comedy credentials behind him.

The room in which the show is performed is sparsely decorated in minimalist black with a large portrait of beloved leader Tony Abbott resting on the floor, centre stage, so when Halligan appears it comes as a bit of a surprise to find that this is not just a show focussed around every comic’s favourite political punchline. It is even more surprising when Halligan expresses a certain amount of sympathy for our Prime Minister.

Halligan begins by pondering a question which is most appropriate in the current political climate in this country – specifically, ‘What does it mean to be Australian?’

Identity is at the heart of Halligan’s show as he briefly ponders his recent relationship break-up and the ensuing conversations he had with friends. We are taken through the process of having to get back out into the gay dating scene in a world of GRINDR and SCRUFF. Along the way Toby ponders his own attitudes to meeting people and relating to them – particularly his own Mother with whom he reveals he recently had a conversation about the use of amyl nitrate.

We hear how his upbringing in Canberra (a place with very little to get up to) and nerdy pastimes at school (he likes chess) perhaps led to the development of his initial awkwardness. This appears to melt away when he is on stage, thankfully, and his audience can be certain of forthright proclamations on topics as diverse as celebrity endorsements of public transport, revealing inappropriate facts about animals and how it is impossible for any politician to be completely honest.

So, we are brought full-circle and return to the true meaning of what it is to be Australian via Clive palmer and his dinosaurs.

Halligan is an energetic and impassioned comedian whose delivery style veers from innocent curiosity to full rant sometimes within the same sentence. But there is always a genuine warmth and playfulness to his material which prevents it becoming uncomfortable. Halligan appreciates the value of a well-placed expletive, not using them merely for shock value or to compensate for a poor vocabulary, but as a form of emphasis.

Tobylerone is playing at Upstairs at Errol’s in North Melbourne until September 26th.
http://www.melbournefringe.com.au/fringe-festival/show/tobylerone/

Once Were Pirates

By Elyce Phillips

Once Were Pirates tells the story of Shane and Gareth (James Cook and Ben Clements), two pirates who become marooned in modern society and must struggle to discover their place within it. While Gareth goes out into the world to find work and make friends, Shane finds the transition more difficult, raising the question of whether it is truly possible to change who you are.

The decision to classify this work as a comedy was an odd one. Its listing in the Fringe guide has you expecting something on the broad and farcical side – two old-fashioned pirates attempting to make sense of the modern world, trying to leave their violent ways behind them. What ‘One Were Pirates’ delivers is something very different. Whilst the show does have humorous moments, the conceit of pirates living in the modern world is used less for comedic effect and more to explore themes of masculinity and self-image in an abstract way. The laughs are too few and far between for this to feel like an out-and-out comedy. The dramatic aspects of the story are what really drive it forward. But this is not in any way to say that the show is disappointing – far from it.

Genre aside, this is a fantastic show. Cook and Clements’ performances are both subtle and powerful. The friendship they create on the stage is heartwarming and complex. Each of the characters is well-realised. Cook’s Shane has a vulnerable lovability that you wouldn’t expect from a pirate. Clements’ Gareth is an artful portrayal of a man desperately trying to leave his past behind him. One scene where he becomes enraged is genuinely shocking and unsettling. Emilie Collyer’s script is wonderful. Her characters may sometimes speak in metaphor, but her words are clear and incisive. This is no doubt in part due to the skillful direction of Daniel Czech. The set design is clever, the costuming spot-on. There is nothing letting the team down here. Every aspect of this show works together to create something special.

Once Were Pirates is a terrific piece of theatre that will leave you thinking about it long after you leave your seat.

Once Were Pirates is showing at Northcote Town Hall – Studio 2 at 7pm until September 28.

http://www.melbournefringe.com.au/fringe-festival/show/once-were-pirates/

Bucket’s List

By Lisa Clark

What a powerhouse pair; writer Sarah Collins who had packed houses of delighted choristers as writer/performer of last year’s wonderful Choir Girl and her partner gifted comic performer Justin Kennedy who can get a laugh from the smallest hand gesture or lifted brow. Last time they worked together was on the beautiful Donna and Damo which impressed me enormously at the time and this is in the same vein of heart-warming sweet romance, melancholy and laughs.

Although Justin as bucket salesman cum wedding DJ Buckets is the main character in the show, he is not alone. He mostly mimes to an ever present voice over provided warmly by Felix Nobis. Beside him is guitarist and singer Rhys Auteri who acts as a perfect low key foil to the effervescent Buckets while he provides a gorgeous acoustic score of well-known songs such as (The Bee Gees’) ‘Emotion’ and ‘Islands in the Stream’ and also plays Buckets’ best friend, a possum living in the tree outside his home. The other person making an appearance on stage is skilled puppeteer Jem Nicholas who does amazing things I can’t give away.

The story and style is reminiscent of a sentimental Daniel Kitson story show if he had actors on stage acting it out while he narrated. The Narrator here, Felix does a stunning job at interpreting Sarah’s quirky script and Sarah does a stunning job of evoking unseen characters and places, like all the people living around Buckets’ in his block of flats. It’s hard to talk about what happens without giving any of it away as part of the joy is discovering it as it all unfolds before you. Needless to say there are a lot of buckets on stage.

From the moment Justin Kennedy appears on stage the audience is captivated, Justin’s charm and charisma is dazzling and his comic miming skills are divine. The laughs, gasps and simpers from the audience are proof that he has us in the palms of his hands every moment he is on stage. There are no dull spots the story has you gripped from start to end, which could also be because of excellent balanced direction from Yvonne Virsik. Sound and lighting are also top notch.

Bucket’s List is a great show to take a date to, it’s very funny and sweet and everyone leaves grinning, feeling uplifted, warm and fuzzy. Don’t miss it.

 Buckets’ List is on at The North Melbourne Town Hall – Rehearsal Room at 9pm until October 4.

http://www.melbournefringe.com.au/fringe-festival/show/bucket-s-list/