Set List : Stand-Up Without A Net

By Lisa Clark

In a short time (only a couple of years) Set List is becoming an exciting must see for comedy fans and a must do for Stand up artists. Created by Americans Troy Conrad and host Paul Provenza (famous for the Aristocrats film and TV show The Green Room with Paul Provenza), itā€™s a sort of Theatresports for stand up performers and has become a fixture at both the Edinburgh Fringe and the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. Last year it was on very late at night, this year itā€™s been brought forward a little, so it doesnā€™t clash with Festival Club and itā€™s easier to get to for those whoā€™d prefer an early night.

A set list is more commonly known as a list of songs performed by a band, for a comedian itā€™s a list of words or phrases referring to practiced comedy routines that they plan to do for their set, something never usually seen by an audience (unless you glimpse the backs of their hands). At Set List the list is generated for them by the Set List Team and a random phrase pops up on a big screen where the comedians see it for the first time and has to make up a routine around it on the spot.

Like Theatresports or the circus watching it can be as thrilling and terrifying for the audience as it is for the performer. Audiences are encouraged to take part by adding ideas on small slips of paper to the suggestion box which the comedian can reach for during their routine if stuck for an idea. Paul also encourages the audience to join in by not being a Dick. In other words, weā€™re there to support the comedians and enjoy the fun, rather than heckle and jeer and make it more difficult for them. It encourages a great vibe and a good time can be had by all.

Itā€™s pretty unfair almost pointless to review the performers themselves as there are going to be vast differences depending on the comedianā€™s experience at improvisation, experience at Set List and the topics they are given. For example a comedian had to cope with a word they clearly didnā€™t know the meaning of. Generally though, all the performers coped really well and the laughs were pretty much non-stop even if they were occasionally for the wrong reason. Some started strongly on an adrenaline high then gradually lost momentum, possibly from thinking too hard and others started slowly and warmed into it. The latter included Set List virgin Matt Okine who enjoyed explaining why Ski-ing = Racism and veritable veteran Wil Anderson who was gifted the topic Gay Time of the month and could barely be restrained from cracking out line after line about homosexuality and ice-creams.

To give you a taste of the ride we enjoyed that night, we were treated to Felicity Ward with her Heroin vs Crack Insights, Simon Munnery who effortlessly explained the ā€˜3 Types of Serial Killers I supportā€™, a nervous Celia Pacquola tackled ā€˜Genocide Sensitivityā€™ in a surprising and clever way, and Ronny Chieng, as cool and smooth as ever, tried to get ā€˜8 people to join Scientology.ā€™

This is a fantastic experience for comedy nerds as well as a broadly entertaining show for casual punters to take a group of friends to. Thereā€™s bound to be a laugh in this for anyone out to have a good time, only remember donā€™t be dicks!

Set List is on at The Victoria Hotel
http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2013/season/shows/set-list-stand-up-without-a-net

Picture This!

By Colin Flaherty

Live cartoons drawn alongside stand-up comedy is an intriguing concept. Add a lively host in Alexandra Elizabeth Howell, four brave guest comedians, Illustrator Hadley Donaldson, a guest scribbler (in this case Jason Chatfield, who has his own cartoon based show), a willing audience and toasted cheese sandwiches, and you have Picture This!

Lining up to have their words immortalised visually at this particular show were Luke McGregor, Michael Hing, Claire Hooper and Celia Pacquola. Apart from Michael (who is a multiple visitor to the Picture This! stage) they performed sets that I have come to know almost word for word from seeing them often at local rooms. I was dying to see what dimension the drawings would add to their material.

The illustrators used one of two methods to work with the comedian; they either drew a literal representation of the jokes or they would toy with the performer and add their own humour to the images. Both were entertaining in their own way.

The literal method resulted in a detailed picture that grew as the routine went along and, while not always adding laughs to the source material, was a feat to behold. It was amazing how rapidly the illustrator worked as the jokes went through their life cycle. After the punchline was reached, it would have to be sadly erased (I hope copies are saved!) to make way for the next joke.

A loose cannon approach tested the comedian’s improv skills as they were forced off the script. Some performers suggested additions to the drawings to which the cartoonist would oblige with amusing results. For the most part it was an exercise in trying to embarrass the comedian with suggestive doodles (ie. lots of penises).

This is a show of sensory overload. Focusing on the screen runs the risk missing any nuances of the comedian’s performance but the words aren’t really the main focus of this show. If you are familiar with ta particular comic’s material you can see where this set goes visually while keeping an ear open for any instances of a curve ball being dealt with. Many times the comedian was surprised by what had been made of their words but usually they were intrigued by the visual representation of themselves.

It was a fun event and certainly something different from your bog standard stand up show with tight five sets. It left some interesting memory imprints to go along with the jokes.

Picture This! is on at The Tuxedo Cat

http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2013/season/shows/picture-this

Celia Pacquola – Delayed

By Annette Slattery

In her new show Delayed Celia Pacquola take the audience on a journey half way around the world and back, covering wristies, high fives, sleep talking, accents, an abacus in poo, bad dancing, accidental assault, hairy stoves, aeroplane toilets and Craig Charles.

In this show Pacquola takes macro concepts and gives them micro treatments. Whilst the stories may cover such grand events as travelling to the other side of the globe and the worldā€™s greatest romantic moment of all time, itā€™s the smaller moments, the incidents in between, the things that a passerby might not even notice, which carry the greatest significance for Pacquola.

Pacquola has a different of way of looking at things. She takes her experiences and extrapolates them out, sometimes to the degree of the absurd. Apart from anything else, Pacquola should be recognised with some kind of award for creating the first, original ā€œaeroplane foodā€ joke in thirty years.

This show is hilarious. Pacquola greets the audience with high energy glee and keeps the ball rolling from one moment to the next. Thereā€™s a slight lull in the laughs towards the end, but Pacquola has the skill to create an evocative story to keep the audience engrossed until the inevitable payoff. And what a payoff!

This is the same standard of high quality show that Iā€™ve come to expect from Pacquola. Yet, thereā€™s something new in her aspect, something in her manner, her gait that reminds me of Mighty Boosh comedian Noel Fielding. Her self deprecating, likeable goofiness is somehow more refined, more focussed. This is a comedian who is constantly refining her craft and, going by the evolution of her work over the last few years, Pacquola promises great things.

Pacquola is someone who deftly straddles the chasm between artistic integrity and wide ranging appeal. Sheā€™s as welcoming as a cuddle from your mum and as thought provoking as a young Justin Hamilton. If youā€™re a fan, donā€™t miss this one. If youā€™re not a fan yet, get on board now, while you can still see her somewhere more intimate than a ten thousand seater.

Celia Pacquola is performing DelayedĀ in theĀ Portico RoomĀ at the Melbourne Town Hall.

http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2012/season/shows/delayed-celia-pacquola/

5 Good Reasons to see Celia Pacquola, Dave O’Neil, Felicity Ward, Lisa-Skye and Dave Callan

5 Good Reasons to see CELIA PACQUOLA DELAYED:

1. I won’t make you feel bad about what you’re wearing. (Sometimes I go out and I feel like people are trying to make me feel bad about what I’m wearing… probably because I’m a grown woman who dresses like a 15 year old boy, anyway.

2. It’s better than a kick in the teeth.

3. My last 2 shows sold out, I know I sound like a wanker saying that, but they did, so, um…I’m a wanker aren’t I?

4. It’s a secret, but I am in charge of karma and if you come I’ll give you some. The good stuff.

5. You know you want to.

http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2012/season/shows/delayed-celia-pacquola/

 

5 Good Reasons to see DAVE Oā€™NEIL – YOU DON’T HAVE A REAL JOB DO YOU DADĀ 

1. It’s a brand new show full of laughs, tears, vomiting.. however you react will be fine.

2. There is no audience participation. Oh except I do get one audience member up and shave their eyebrows, but apart from that..

3. You will get an insight into what it’s like to be a working comedian, from Hollywood to Hollywood-on-the-Gold Coast.

4. I have three children, I need to feed them. So if you can’t afford the ticket price, bring a loaf of bread.

5. It’s on at the Hairy Little Sista, right around the corner from the town hall in Little Collins st- it’s got a great bar, restaurant, you can meet me, I clean the toilets as well as performing.

http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2012/season/shows/you-don-t-really-have-a-job-do-you-dad-dave-o-neil/

Dave O’Neil’s other show is a panel show at the Wheeler Centre called Get Fact on the 13th & 20th of April at 7pm

http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2012/season/shows/get-fact-dave-o-neil/

 

5 Good Reasons to see FELICITY WARD – THE HEDGEHOG DILEMMA

1.Ā It’s the funniest show I’ve ever written.

2. I will tell you how hedgehogs anatomically “do the sex”.

3. This show was just nominated for BEST COMEDY at Adelaide Fringe 2012.

4. People point out that I’m very skinny. The only way I can change that is if I buy more food. The only way I can do that is if you buy more tickets.

5. How do you get to five without sounding like a dick? Just come. It’s heaps good. You’ll laugh’n’shit. Promise.

http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2012/season/shows/the-hedgehog-dilemma-felicity-ward-in/

 

5 Good Reasons to see LISA-SKYE – LADYBONER

1. Throughout the show, you will laugh, get terrified and get hard. But at which points will you do each? The answer says more about you then it does about me.

2. There’s a 1-minute video that EVERYONE will be talking about. (It made someone faint during my sold-out Melbourne Fringe Season). Get in on it.

3. I’m very sparkly.

4. I have a motherfucking metronome. This is not a drill, people.

5. The show is called LADYBONER, for Christ’s sake. LADYBONER.

http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2012/season/shows/ladyboner-lisa-skye/

 

5 Good Reasons to see DAVE CALLAN: THE GRAVEYARD SHIFT

1. Because it defies the space time continuum by having ‘me present’ introduce ‘me past’ talking live.

2. It features many people on drugs, drunk or of questionable mental health unchained and on air.

3. All the cool people are going who are also good looking.

4. My Mum said it was heaps good.

5. Its actually hard to breathe at parts its so funny (not me, the callers) obviously this is not a selling point if you have breath problems.

http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2012/season/shows/the-graveyard-shift-dave-callan/

MICF 2012 Shows on sale now

Tickets are now on sale for shows in this years Melbourne International Comedy Festival.

The Comedy Festival Gala is being hosted by Sammy J & Randy and has already sold out, but there are still tickets available for some of the festivals biggest events including the Opening Night Comedy Allstars Supershow, RAW Comedy National Grand Final, The 23rd Annual Great Debate Upfront and more!

Highlights in 2012 include American comedy legend Wanda Sykes, the return of UK based comedians Dave Gorman, Shappy Khorsandi, Glenn Wool Tim KeyĀ and Aussie born Sarah Kendall. Simon Munnery’s two shows, including his conceptual restaurant ‘La Concepta’ which we tasted a sample ofĀ during his show last year and, as always, a new one from Daniel Kitson. Four of Australia’s best comedians are getting together to perform a liveĀ silent film; Andy Mclelland, Asher Trelevan, Celia Pacquola and Sammy J in Tie her to the Tracks. Interesting pairings include Bob Franklin and Steven Gates (of Tripod) in Stubborn Monkey Disorder and the husband and wife team of Mike McLeish & Fiona Harris in …..Plus One. There is also Rod Quantock’s Mystery Comedy Tour which is garanteed fun if you don’t mind walking and don’t forget to try something new. You might discover the next big name! Of course there are many, many more shows happening, so get to it.

To get in early and secure your seats, check out the full list of shows on sale here. New shows are being added as they go on sale.