Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2016 – Page 3

Rhys Nicholson – Bona Fide

By Elyce Phillips

Rhys Nicholson, aka Mama Showbiz, is back in Melbourne with a new hour of stand-up in Bona Fide. It’s faced-paced comedy that barely gives you time to catch your breath between the punchlines, from an extremely talented comedian.

At 26, Nicholson’s noticing that his friends are starting to settle down, getting married and buying property. In the meantime, he and his boyfriend of six years are travelling for work and holidaying in France. They’d maybe like to get married at some point but, unfortunately, marriage equality still has a ways to go in this country. Bona Fide strings together a bunch of stories about growing up – from Nicholson’s teen years where he was figuring out who he was, to learning how to behave at weddings. Though the specifics of Nicholson’s material are not something many of us have experience with – most in the audience aren’t internationally touring comedians – Nicholson’s humour is very relatable. A section on his dealings with anxiety seemed to particularly strike a chord, getting big laughs from the room.

Nicholson’s delivery is perfect – sharp, witty and acidic. There’s not a slow moment in Bona Fide. Every single story, every little aside is perfectly placed. Nicholson struck up a good rapport with the audience, easily winning over those who had not seen him perform before. He’s a natural on the stage and consistently hilarious.

Nicholson’s stand-up is just moving from strength to strength and Bona Fide is his best show yet. And if you bring along some cash, you can snap up a snazzy brooch after the show as a memento of the fun times.

Rhys Nicholson – Bona Fide is on at Roxanne and Melbourne Town Hall until April 17
http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2016/season/shows/bona-fide-rhys-nicholson

Charlie Pickering – How To Tame A Wild Squirrel

By Phillip Lescaut

In 2016, Charlie Pickering is a MICF veteran, but that doesn’t mean this isn’t an exciting period for the comedian. To the majority who are familiar with him through TV, he’s recently made the significant shift from Channel Ten to the ABC, and from the former’s relatively reasonable roundtable to the latter’s more satirical, John Oliver-inspired show, a move that fortified his status as a nice, universally accessible funny man who’s also engaged with The Issues. This reputation isn’t undeserved: Charlie’s an intelligent man, who’s cited greater freedom from sensationalist, commercial pressures at the ABC as motivation for the change. The kind of thoughtfulness and gentle humour he brings to his interviews is evident throughout his new show How To Tame A Wild Squirrel, although, unfortunately, so are occasional stretches of more middling material.

How To Tame A Wild Squirrel has a feel typical of a successful comedian’s annual special, where the audience gets the treat of listening to a voice they already know and love take on the topics of the moment. There’s a pretty great takedown of the banal merry-go-round of morning news programmes, a thoroughly apolitical anecdote about inappropriate Twitter wisecracking in the wake of the Paris attacks, and, as the title already spoiled so get off my back, some practical advice about squirrel-taming.As expected for Pickering, whose comedy by now is known to be intertwined with occasionally subversive political punditry, he spends some time reflecting on politics. He mourns for Tony Abbott’s slapstick prime ministership in a eulogy of monumental passive aggression. He also deals boldly with race, looking at controversies such as the booing of Adam Goodes and the continual and moronic reinvestigation of whether it’s OK to do blackface. Not surprisingly, this is the most thrilling and funniest stuff Charlie offers with this show. Being a nice white boy, Charlie hasn’t got as much to lose chastising middle Australia for its racism as a comic of colour might, but his jokes around the issue are smart and accurate without presuming to speak on behalf of minorities, and it’s a good thing that someone with such a wide audience keeps the subject of race front and centre. Considering his experience, he drags the occasional gag for one too many laps of the stage, such as an overlong bit about millennials’ phone-using that’s not particularly more artfully told by him than by your mate’s dad. While the majority of his material is strong and the laughs are consistent (a couple of the aforementioned gags received applause), the occasional speedbump like this does slow his momentum in creating a frenzy of hilarity.

How To Tame A Wild Squirrel is an enjoyable, solid hour of stand-up that has enough interesting ideas peppered through it to keep things exciting, and its brightest moments are pretty hilarious. It’s worth bearing in mind that it’s a show by one of Australian comedy’s most reliable stars, so it never touches on anything truly radical the way the big names of American comedy sometimes can. How To Tame A Wild Squirrel proves that Charlie Pickering is well aware of his wide appeal, so it’s a safe bet that he’ll have a joke or two prepared specially for you.

Charlie Pickering How To Tame A Wild Squirrel is on at The Comedy Theatre Thursday nights only.

http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2016/season/shows/how-to-tame-a-wild-squirrel-charlie-pickering

Tripod – 101 Hits

By Elyce Phillips

It’s hard to believe it, but Tripod (Scott Edgar, Steven Gates and Simon Hall) have been performing together for 20 years. Why, it only feels like yesterday that Scod, Gatesy and Yon were in their matching skivvies or whipping up songs in an hour on Triple J. To celebrate this massive achievement, Tripod have released a songbook titled ‘101 Tripod Hits’ – a collection of their best work over the last two decades. In the show version of 101 Hits, the fates decide the playlist, drawing randomly from the book via a bingo cage and 101 numbered balls.

On the evening I attended, there was a good mix of older and more recent material. The bingo cage delivered songs from as far back as Tosswinkle (‘Building An Enid’) to 2013’s Men of Substance (The hilariously choreographed ‘DILF’). The performances got a little shaky on songs being plucked out for the first time in the run, but it’s incredibly impressive that they’re prepared to play whatever the balls decide. On the whole, the performances were fantastic showcasing not only the trio’s musical talent but also their comedic skill. These songs are still so very, very funny, some even becoming more topical with the passage of time.

In the ‘staff picks’ section of the show, Tripod were joined by a special guest, viollinist Xani Kolac, who played a gorgeous rendition of ‘Let’s Take A Walk’. She then stayed on to accompany a performance of ‘Astronaut’, her effects-laden strings turning the song into something hauntingly beautiful, yet still venting the frustrations of those fat gloves.

If you’re a long-time fan, the nostalgia factor will make this a really special show. I was bobbing up and down with excitement when I heard the opening chords of ‘IKEA’, as I was kind of obsessed with the song back in the day (I was a horrifically nerdy teen). But if you’ve somehow missed Tripod until now, it’s a wonderful way to get a feel for what they’re all about.

Although no two shows will be the same, Tripod have a back catalogue so brilliant, you can be sure you’ll have a great time. 101 Hits is a whole lot of fun and a must-see for fans.

Tripod – 101 Hits is on at The Famous Spiegeltent at the Art Centre until April 17

http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2016/season/shows/101-hits-tripod

Anthony Jeannot – Rage Against The Man Child

By Elyce Phillips

When we’re young, we’re idealistic – confident that if we put our minds to it, we can be our best and achieve anything. As we grow older, it can be difficult to maintain that naïve positivity as we are increasingly confronted by our own limits and those of society. In Rage Against The Man Child, Anthony Jeannot explores what it is to grow up and look at our lives through the prism of our younger self. It’s a bittersweet show about losing your optimism and regaining it in unexpected ways.

Jeannot tells thoughtful and funny tales from his life. He strikes a good balance between idealism and reality, setting a tone that’s ultimately uplifting without being overly saccharine. There’s a nice flow to the show. Using three points from a letter he wrote to himself as a teenager gives Jeannot’s tales a framework, and adds a feeling of narrative to what could have been disparate stories. A piece about his current role working in social media for a teen clothing brand was a stand-out and hilarious.

Rage Against The Man Child isn’t super polished. There are still some visible nerves in Jeannot on the stage and his material can at times become meandering – more akin to casual conversation with a mate than structured storytelling. However, this also adds a layer of vulnerability to the show that’s in keeping with the theme. Jeannot’s comedy is relatable and self-effacing, and had the audience chuckling throughout. He can certainly hold the attention of a crowd.

This is a fine work of stand-up from an up-and-coming comedian. Jeannot is entertaining, witty, and you even get a showbag at the end.

Rage Against The Man Child is on at the Downstairs Lounge at The Grand Mercure Hotel until April 17

http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2016/season/shows/rage-against-the-man-child-anthony-jeannot

Alasdair Tremblay-Birchall – Oh Hey Guys

By Lisa Clark

Alasdair Tremblay-Birchall has been doing comedy in Melbourne for many years. He’s collaborated a lot with other performers like Pat Burtscher. This is the first time I’ve seen him do a full solo standup show and it won’t be the last. Oh Hey Guys has the loveliest bit of (non-compulsory), unexpected, audience participation in it of the festival. Let’s just say, if you like a bit of carol singing, this is the show for you.

Alasdair is a great storyteller and a great writer, but don’t expect him to be slick or hitting you with rapid fire punchlines, he’s more thoughtful and reflective in style but he can still bowl you over. Oh Hey Guys gave me my best laugh so far at the Festival, I was really nearly falling out of my seat in tears at his story about a Buck’s night that takes a strange turn. I would love to have been at that Bucks night. It’s not what you expect at all.

The minimal audience participation in the show is, like Alasdair, unthreatening, and rather sweet. He makes one audience member our leader and doesn’t bother him too much. Then in the middle of the show there is a surprise that I can’t spoil (though the aforesaid singing might come into it) and it is a joyful, inspired surprise, almost as good at Michael Williams’ astonishing surprise in his show, which I also can’t talk about, (even though his season has finished, he might wish to perform it elsewhere), but anyway, you will be talking about Alasdair’s surprise to your friends and they will say, “Oh My God, that’s BRILLIANT!” and it was. Silly and brilliant.

Alasdair’s a brand new dad and the fact that he was able to put a show together that is as lovely and funny as this, is some sort of miracle in itself. New fatherhood does not dominate the show but when he does talk about it, he’s doing it from the angle of an intellectual inner city comedian. He finds laughs in the most unexpected aspects of parenthood and it’s refreshing to hear someone going into darker aspects of the experience.

If you are looking for something smart, warm, delightful and not at all in your face at the Festival, go see Alasdair, he’s funny and also, he’s got a new family to support.

Oh Hey Guys is on at the Forum Theatre until April 17

http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2016/season/shows/oh-hey-guys-alasdair-tremblay-birchall

Ross Purdy’s Apocaparty Destruct-a-thon: Presented by Demente Grande Variety Hour

By Colin Flaherty

Apocaparty Destruct-a-thon: Presented by Demente Grande Variety Hour. The title alone had me intrigued in Ross Purdy’s show and the blurb in the guide accurately sums up what you can expect; a “hot soup of existential dread and bizarre stupidity”.

This show explores the concepts of failure, crushed dreams and parental disappointment. These themes are fertile territory for comedy but Purdy often struggles to find the funny. He discusses his character’s mental issues rather dryly to the odd nervous titter so he had to resort to graphic turns of phrase and extreme self-deprecation to get most of the laughs. With these topics you would expect to see some sort of interesting character arc, but this is not the case as the aforementioned existential dread quashes any such notions. Aside from repeatedly pounding us with the fact that life is shit he doesn’t seem to be telling us anything else let alone offer any solutions.

An awful lot of his show is weirdness just for the sake of it. While this sits nicely with his theme of mental illness it lacks cleverness and employs absolutely no subtlety. There’s plenty of gross out humour that’s quite puerile and garners guilty chuckles. The biggest reactions he gets are from the many acts of self-flagellation which tend to be more awkward than laugh out loud (although the sadists in the crowd would say otherwise). You have to pay very close attention to follow the storyline buried amongst all the madness. His jumping between disparate thoughts may have been an appropriate way to demonstrate a breakdown on stage but it was difficult to sit through. In a similar manner, the finale to this performance is a rambling affair with numerous false endings dragging things out unnecessarily.

Performance wise, this is very messy. He regularly fumbles through a box of props which is distracting and the performance space ends up as an apt pigsty. Purdy uses a lot of pre-recorded dialogue to react to and generally does a good job of it but the effects heavy voices are often difficult to decipher particularly when combined with a musical soundtrack. Similarly his monologues go from quiet mumbling to shouting; again appropriate for the character but difficult to comprehend. He certainly has a distinct and unique voice, and commits wholeheartedly to selling this show but it’s a shame that his delivery can be so impenetrable.

One aspect I found intriguing and amusing were a number of moments self-critiquing his own performance while having digs at comedic conventions. His acknowledgement to the audience that he is well aware that this is all a bit of a shemozzle is cute but doesn’t really make things any more palatable.

While certainly a wild ride, this Apocaparty seems happy to wallow in the gutter rather than reach for the stars. If the humour of humiliation appeals you may find something to tickle your fancy but those hoping for something more coherent and substantial will find it a bit too much to cope with.

Apocaparty Destruct-a-thon: Presented by Demente Grande Variety Hour is on at Pleasance House Comedy until April 17

http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2016/season/shows/apocaparty-destruct-a-thon-presented-by-demente-grande-variety-hour-ross-purdy