5 good reasons to see Rob Caruana: Silent Comedy

This year Rob Caruana (comedian/entertainer/inept juggler and stuntman) is performing a three-act solo black and white silent cinematic experience live on stage. Free popcorn included.

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It is called Silent Comedy!

Its on at The Grand Mercure Hotel Mar 24 – Apr 3

Tim Hewitt – Suckerfish

By Luke Simmons Suckerfish

Tim Hewitt’s Suckerfish was a show run at the 2015 Melbourne International Comedy Festival that contained Hewitt and a revolving door of invited comedy acts. This reviewer went on the last night of the festival and it was clear that there was a party atmosphere in the air.

Playing his role as the MC, Hewitt weaved in and out of his material in dream like fashion and brought most attention from the crowd when he gave a Chris Farley-like impression which drew gasps when it became apparent that his head was about to explode.

Michael Shafar then got on the mic and delivered a structured set of comedy material gaining most laughs from his assortment of travel stories. His story about being robbed in Jamaica was one of the night’s highlights. Shafer is an interesting work in progress who demonstrated great skills of storytelling. All that seemed missing with Shafer was a bit of bravado when he steps up to (boss) the mic.

Rob Caruana got onto the stage and wasted no time getting involved with some banter and crowd play. However, after bringing technical props into play, he experienced technical difficulties which prevented him for moving into his material.

Ryan Coffey then closed out the night and delivered a solid power set of gags which served as a taster for his Heartbreaker show. He’s got a real stage presence and gave the air of a seasoned pro as he drew laughs from his beard-related comedy. Which begs the question… Were beard gags so popular when they were last in fashion in the 70’s?  He closed out with a one man musical piece using unique a unique style of beat boxing which had the crowd in stiches.

The overall show wasn’t the most polished this reviewer had seen throughout the festival, but it’s clear that Tim will be better for the experience of having his MICF  debut under his belt.

Rob Caruana : Learn Comedy

By Colin FlahertyRob Caruana

With four years of stand up under his belt, Rob Caruana is here to teach everybody about comedy. After listening to his ridiculously incomplete analogies and half-baked examples you will probably be none the wiser, but are guaranteed to split your sides as he tries to impart his wisdom.

The theme for his show was essentially a loose framework for Caruana to throw all sorts of silliness our way. There were no weighty themes at work here – just an hour of exuberant joy, even during his token “melancholic” segment. It was a mix of fluffy throwaway lines and wonderfully clever ideas all presented in an almost stream of consciousness manner (that had surely been tightly scripted). His routines led to some excellent, imaginative prop work often with ridiculously detailed background details to flesh out the joke to its fullest. Tools he deemed necessary to be a proper teacher were haphazardly discarded or misused to add to the lunacy.

Banter with the audience not only served as joke set ups but created plenty of amusing segues. Caruana’s interactions with us flowed effortlessly and created a warm atmosphere where laughter was lovingly nurtured. Granted the night I attended was a room stacked with friends and family (ensuring some easy comebacks) but he certainly has the skills to bounce off any crowd with ease.

What really impressed was his uber confident stage persona. His experience co-hosting the C31 talk show Live On Bowen shone through with extremely slick presentation. In fact the show had a vague tonight show structure with an opening monologue followed by a high energy opening (how he didn’t injure himself on that small stage is a miracle!). He had a touch of old school vaudevillian comic about him in his cadence, joke structure and exaggerated reactions. There were even a couple of brilliant prat falls that hearken back to that era.

Learn Comedy is a brilliant debut from a comedian who has just only begun to hit his straps.

Learn Comedy is on at The Downstairs Lounge @ The Grand Mercure Hotel until April 5

http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2015/season/shows/learn-comedy-rob-caruana