Sophia Stanley – 101 Texts Not to Send to Jarrod

By Hooi Khaw

Sophia Stanley makes a stellar debut at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival with 101 Texts Not to Send to Jarrod. Stanley’s natural comedic instincts have the audience onside immediately, making the audience willing to indulge in the weird fun that Stanley brings to the stage.

Stanley is a natural performer, making it hard to believe that this is her first show; she paces the stage with comfort, and her delivery is conversational and engaging.

Her show is a mix of witty observations, real life stories (many about her hilariously ridiculous relationship with Jarrod), and absurd extrapolations of these. She paces her show well with sketches, and intermittent crowd work.

It seemed that a number of her friends were in the audience this night, and she made several comments directed at them, which did not land as favourably with the wider audience. Without knowing the specific individual, it’s easy for the audience to feel left out of these jokes. This is easily forgiven though, as she had the crowd in stitches for most of the show.

With a style distinctively her own that is as clever as it is surprising, she keeps you on your toes with the punch lines, and guarantees a good laugh.

101 Texts Not To Send To Jarrod is on at Loop Project Space & Bar.
https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2018/shows/101-texts-not-to-send-to-jarrod

5 Good Reasons to See Ethan Andrews – The Youngest I Am Ever Going To Be

1) Festivals are for seeing up and comers, not just TV stars. The feeling of discovering a new act is a joy you just don’t get watching the big names. Also, in 2013 someone vomited on Ethan during Arj Barker. This will not happen in this show.

2)This pre-show playlist is great. To get you hyped, check out this playlist of tracks that inspired The Youngest I Am Every Going To Be.

3) Ethan is the only comedian in this year’s festival who can boast having grown up in the town with the highest ratio of men to women in Australia.

Reason number four? More like reason 4.5. That’s how many stars the show got from Tulpa Magazine. “If you see one comedy show this season, I strongly recommend this be it.”

Reason number five? More like reason 5:30. At the happy-hour friendly time of 5:30pm and with shows running at Tasma Terrace all night long, The Youngest I Am Ever Going To Be is the perfect first course in a comedy banquet.

The Youngest I Am Ever Going To Be is on at Tasma Terrace until April 22
https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2018/shows/ethan-andrews-the-youngest-i-am-ever-going-to-be

Andy Zaltzman – Right Questions, Wrong Answers

By Will Erskine 

Andy Zaltzman is a master of observational comedy driven by politics, current events and of course his favourite topic – cricket. A multi-layered performance, referencing the obscure, engaging with the audience and presenting sharp political humour in an absurd and sometimes bizarre way. Right Question, Wrong Answer starts with a mock quiz to introduce the premise of the world delivering the wrong answer when asked an important question, it ends in a conversation with a friendly robot. In between and interweaved with the technical props and set pieces are observations, one liners and word play that ensure the show operates spectacularly on all levels.

Andy’s approach to comedy is so intricately researched and designed that it isn’t possible for any audience member to understand every reference and that’s exactly as designed. The show is wonderfully intelligent while remaining accessible to anyone, even if they only have the most glancing interest in world events. Right Question, Wrong Answer is a show with a global reach, with topics ranging from Brexit, Australian immigration and naturally Donald Trump, it explores the idea of nationhood and what it means to be British. This show will naturally appeal to those who like their comedy satirical and topical, but there is enough depth for it to be enjoyable to all.

Andy is clearly adding material all the time based on what’s happening in the world. He said a couple of times that a bit was new that night and it is a joy to see him enjoy the audience reaction for the first time. The only struggle for Andy with this show is the allotted time, there is far more material than there is time and at this point in the run he’s still determining what should be in the 1-hour slot and what should be left for the director’s cut. This show will evolve over its run which makes it a rare show that may justify multiple viewings to witness the evolution.

It was a pleasure to see a master of his craft at work, and while tonight’s performance was not quite the finished article it provided a rare glimpse into workings behind the scenes. Seeing it at this stage humanizes the show and allows a deeper connection between the audience and the performer, while Andy acknowledged that the first few nights the audience was “more of a focus group”, it was without doubt the most entertaining focus group I’ve been involved with.

Andy Zaltzman – Right Questions, Wrong Answers is on at the Town Hall until April 22nd see website for details – https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2018/shows/andy-zaltzman

 

Nick Cody: Loose Unit

By Lisa Clark  

If you are looking for some straight up and down stand up to take your mates to, step right up. Do you love Beer, sports and pranks? So does Nick and he’s good at comedy.

I laughed all the way through Nick’s show. Not double over, crying, but enjoying it more than some of the couples around me who I didn’t see laugh once, though they appeared to be enjoying themselves. It’s a pretty mainstream audience for a pretty conventional show. There’s a bit of language and a LOT about excrement, but this is conservative comedy at its most charming and accessible.

I don’t often mention house music, but Nick makes sure that we know he picked it, ‘cause he loves it. I always find it mildly embarrassing when white suburban young men love rap about “bitches, bitches, bitches”. I have no idea who the artist is (so many raps about bitches eh?) but it is pretty off putting for me to say the least (it’s like a sign on a boys clubhouse saying “No Girls Allowed”). On one hand it’s jarring and contrary to Nick’s friendly, relaxed persona, on the other an unsurprising clichĂ©.

Like the house music both going in and out, everything about Loose Unit is thoughtfully planned and well-constructed. Not much about the show is loose, though some of the funniest moments were a couple of interactions with the audience. The material is mostly biographical, about pranks with his wife, his new dog (a Staffy
surprise surprise), hanging out with mates and hating uptight nerds and guys with long hair
. Wait a minute
Very little phases me these days but it’s amazing how riled up I became about this, especially Nick’s hatred of men with long hair. Is Nick from the 1950s? Did we not sort this bullshit prejudice out in the 60s and 70s? Or is this what private school is doing to kids these days?

Nick seems to be in a bit of denial about the fact that he is anything but a loose unit; married and trying for a family, dog owning, doing good deeds (performing to the troops), starting to enjoy country music and performing convivial, carefully crafted standup comedy. He’s clearly on his way to a career in TV or radio.

Nick Cody performs Loose Unit at The Victoria Hotel til April 22

https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2018/shows/loose-unit

Let’s Get Practical! Live

By Colin Flaherty

The latest offering by The Very Good Looking Initiative is set in the world of cheesy TV talk shows. They accurately call it experimental and subversive anti-theatre but calling it a comedy is often a stretch.

If you’ve ever been to a TV taping you will recognize all the stupid things the audience is put through by the warm up guy, applause practice, call and response, and generating excitement. We experience all this but the over use of repetition pushes these things to the point of exhaustion.

Once the “show” starts proper, our host Elliott Gee, all fake tan and Gold Coast haircut, gives us an extended opening monologue full of lame jokes. A particular highlight is his troop of dancers who regularly bump and grind with huge smiles and a limited repertoire of moves.

It’s inevitable that in a show set at a TV taping the production itself or the host will experience a meltdown and boy this is a doozy. Things devolve into a terrifying Lynchian carnival of grotesque characters and bizarre situations that uses a harsh soundtrack of electronic noise and nightmarish lighting. We hear the disturbing inner thoughts of our host and see segments of a TV show direct from hell. Those that worship at the altar of Tim and Eric may get some perverse laughs but everyone else will generally see these scenes as disturbing or sad.

Let’s Get Practical! – Live has a similar feel to their last show Cull (Melb Fringe 2016 and MICF 2017) in that they go to really dark places in search of laughs. Like Cull, I found it a struggle to get beyond a nervous titter with most of their ideas. A handful of the segments are played broadly by all indicating that the intent is indeed humour. Even with the dark tone these are clever and playful enough to get us giggling. Other scenes however are delivered so po-faced that we experience discomfort rather than laughs.

There’s no doubt this is an impressive assault on the senses that has plenty of spook-house thrills to entertain. All the performances are top notch and the themes are challenging, making this a show to check out if your tastes swing towards the freaky. Just how many laughs you will actually get depends if you think words such as “excruciatingly wonderful” and “anxiety-inducing” are terms that promise an amusing time.

Let’s Get Practical! Live is on at the Cooper’s Malthouse – The Tower until April 22
https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2018/shows/let-s-get-practical-live

Natalie Palamides – Laid

By Elyce Phillips 

A woman lays an eggs every morning and must make an important decision – will she eat the egg to sustain herself or will she raise it as her child? This terrible dilemma lies at the centre of Natalie Palamides’ Laid, a dark and absurd tale that will have you laughing and cringing in equal measure.

Laid takes a big issue that many women face – whether or not they should become a mother – and playfully dissects it through some delightfully messy clowning. It’s hilariously silly and completely chaotic, but running underneath it all are fascinating questions about motherhood. How do you know when you are ready? What if that time never comes? How much of your own life are you willing to sacrifice? Despite these potentially heavy themes, the pace of Laid never lets up, and the absurdity of Palamides’ clowning is always at the forefront.

The structure of Laid is simple yet extremely effective. Each time the show resets for another birth, the tension builds and the audience becomes ever more invested in the fate of the small, fragile egg baby. The pattern becomes familiar and you know what’s coming, but you can’t help but feel a glimmer of hope for each new bub.

Palamides is an incredibly engaging performer. From the moment you enter the venue, your eyes are drawn to her huddling in the corner in her large, plush egg costume, and she holds your attention unrelentingly. Her experience in voice acting is used to great effect, adding a whole other dimension of character to the eggs.

The direction of Dr Brown is clear in Laid. Much of the success of the show is reliant on audience participation. Palamides shows great skill in drawing the best out of the audience, and quickly adapted to whatever was thrown her way. The atmosphere she creates in Laid is phenomenal, making the audience feel connected to both her performance and to the other audience members in the room.

Laid is truly one of the best shows you can catch at MICF this year. Palamides is a masterful comedian, who can take you to some dark, weird places while keeping you laughing all the while. It’s a show that will linger in your mind for weeks, much like the scent of eggs that now lingers in the Rehearsal Room.

*Note – actual eggs are used in the performance and it’s advised you don’t attend if you are allergic.

Natalie Palamides – Laid is on at the Arts Centre Playhouse Rehearsal Room until April 15

https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2018/shows/natalie-palamides