Reviews – Page 74 – Squirrel Comedy

Luke Joseph Ryan – Merry Christmas ISIS

By Elyce Phillips

Luke Joseph Ryan has got one of the more interesting show names in the festival this year. Merry Christmas ISIS is a hell of a title to backup, and Ryan just about manages to do it. It’s a show with plenty of laughs, but also a few hiccups along the way.

Merry Christmas ISIS starts out strong with a delightfully weird, thematically-relevant musical opening, before leading into some solid stand-up. Ryan’s material on everything from balding to swimming pool sanitation to sword-loving relatives is wonderfully funny. Some jokes dance on the border of good taste, and Ryan delights in these moments of discomfort. He’s got a cheeky persona that keeps you on-board, regardless of the topic.

The show gets a little meta at times. Some things go wrong and it’s clearly all a part of the act, but then other things go wrong and you’re not quite sure if that’s part of the joke too. It all became a bit blurred by the fact that the room was filled with Ryan’s friends and then me, a lone reviewer, and so the show took on a more casual tone than perhaps was normal. Every now and then Ryan would mention that the show wasn’t going all that well, which again, may have been part of the joke but it disrupted the flow of the gig. What was intended as self-deprecating humour fell flat, as Ryan pointed out, because his friends showed genuine concern – unlike a regular audience.

Merry Christmas ISIS is shambolic but fun. There’s some great jokes in here, but the show could benefit from a little more structural clarity and a little less self-deprecation to ensure they really shine.

Luke Joseph Ryan – Merry Christmas ISIS is on at Tasma Terrace until April 8
https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2017/shows/merry-christmas-isis

The Ballad of Frank Allen

By Colin Flaherty

Frank Allen (Shane Adamczak) was minding his own business, working as a janitor in a laboratory, when he was accidently shrunken down and found himself stuck in the beard of Al (St John Cowcher). Over the course of eighteen months we see this pair stumble their way through the drudgery of dead end jobs, the pitfalls of starting and maintaining a relationship, and the threat of evil scientists in this strange and hysterical buddy comedy.

This two hander is staged with Adamczak occupying one half of the stage with Cowcher on the other, each within their own space: Frank in the beard and Al in the larger world. We often switch from one location to the other to obtain different viewpoints of the story with plenty of detailed and humorous commentary and exposition. They also take turns in playing supporting characters; swapping those roles at will with some clever explanation for the change in casting.

The structure of the story is especially impressive. Regular flash-forwards to an action sequence creates sizzle and has us expectantly wondering “how do our heroes get to that point?” Some plot points are economically covered as they trust their audience can fill in the gaps better then they can enact it on stage with their limited time and resources.

It’s a very physical story with the guys unafraid to make themselves look silly. The pair throw themselves around the stage and mime their hearts out to bring this bizarre tale to life. They work together brilliantly, hitting a number of audio and lighting cues with ease. They manage to fit in a bit of adlibbing to try and force the other to corpse which is rather indulgent but fun to watch.

There are a number of brilliant hilarious tunes slipped in at appropriate parts of the show. Unlike musical theatre numbers that advance the plot, these songs freeze the action to describe the emotional state of one of the characters. They manage to pack plenty of amusing ideas into each tune so you’ll be tapping you toes as well as chuckling along.

The Ballad of Frank Allen is wholly original piece of comedic theatre. Do not miss out on seeing this riotous experience.

The Ballad of Frank Allen is on at The Butterfly Club until April 9
https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2017/shows/the-ballad-of-frank-allen

Geraldine Quinn – Sunglasses At Night: The 80s Apocalypse Sing Along Cabaret

by Angela East

If you like 80s music, a good sing along, or just some top notch cabaret then Sunglasses At Night: The 80s Apocalypse Sing Along Cabaret with Geraldine Quinn, accompanied by keyboardist Cameron Thomas, is a great way to spend a Monday night during the festival.

Introductory slides provide a background on the 80s, for those who may not be old enough to have lived through it, or as a reminder to those of us that did. It wasn’t all ra-ra skirts and girls having fun; there was also cold war and pretentious pop. This sets up for the duo to make their way to the stage, suitably attired with sunglasses, to perform Vienna with the aid of a squeaky prop.

While it is a sing along there’s no pressure on the audience to get involved immediately. The second song provides the chance to ease into singing with some call back on the chorus, and from then on Geraldine encourages everyone to join in. It’s a fun hour of well known 80s hits, from Ultra Vox to Spandau Ballet.

If you’re not familiar with all the lyrics, they are written out and projected on the screen. Even if you do know all the words off by heart, read along, as there’s amusing gags in the notes and drawings on the screen as well as from Geraldine’s performance, whether she’s breaking down the dance moves from the Love is a Battlefield film clip, or attempting to sing in another language.

Dressing up in 80s outfits is fully encouraged as there are prizes up for grabs for the best dressed and a fun spot of audience participation. I’m not usually a fan of karaoke, or singing in public in general, but I loved the song choices and everyone seems to be having so much fun you can’t help but to join in, leaving at the end with a big smile.

Geraldine is a funny host as well as being a fantastic singer, it’s just a shame that we couldn’t all jump up and join in on the Pat Benatar dance moves as well.

Sunglasses at Night: The 80s Apocalypse Sing Along Cabaret is at the Melbourne Town hall, Mondays until the 17th April
https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2017/shows/sunglasses-at-night

Natalie Harris is Dragon

By Colin Flaherty

Natalie Harris decided the bestow the nickname Dragon on herself and persisted with it until her mother referred to her by it. In her third solo Comedy Festival show she explores the realities of living up to this moniker with amusing anecdotes, presented with all the bravado associated with being Dragon.

This is a show about image, expectations and personal development in which Harris manipulates her own to great effect. Presenting us with this alpha female persona of Dragon, cracks soon appear in the facade. This drip feeding of the “real Natalie” happens subtly throughout the performance. It isn’t pushed to its extreme for the huge comic effect she is probably hoping for but pushes that narrative along nicely.

Harris plays the role of Dragon brilliantly; uber confident and always right, even when she contradicts herself. It’s not as aggressive as you would expect and perfectly sets her up as a buffoon we can laugh at. She’s at her hilarious best when she rails against small first world problems and coerces us into accepting her skewed points of view. She even goes to the extent of providing physical evidence for her experiences which adds an amusing “trying too hard” element to this unreliable narrator. When she polls the audience for our opinions they are comically brushed them off as she clearly knows better.

There are a few quiet stretches that are more straight confessional musings or factual statements rather than funny lines. These don’t have us rolling in the aisles but it certainly has us paying attention. Not every one of her ideas lands but those that do are doozies. Witty pop culture references used to cleverly punctuate her points work well and various throwaway lines add some unexpected surprises.

Dragon is solid hybrid of stand up and theatre that keeps everyone riveted to every word.

Dragon is on at Trades Hall until April 23
https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2017/shows/dragon

Headliners 1 – Emily Heller, Jak Knight, Liza Treyger and Ryan Hamilton

By Lisa Clark

For many years The MICF had very few guests from the USA and some of that was no doubt due to they’re not being used to our hour long festival format. Since Headliners has been a showcase for American comedians we’ve been lucky enough to see a lot of great performers who often pop up on the Comedy Channel in shows like @Midnight. Tonight was no exception.

The Charming mid-western boy now living in New York Ryan Hamilton opened the night making fun of the idea that Melbourne, often described to travellers as Australia’s New York, is anything like New York at all. He was kind enough to point out that a lot of aspects of Melbourne were better than New York’s to keep us on side, but Australians tend to travel a lot so most of us agreed with him. His style reminded me very much of Seinfeld but Seinfeld comedy being done by Kenny the Page from 30 Rock. This became particularly obvious when he was doing material about dating. He found it a little difficult to warm up the crowd, but soon got them on side with this great material about the difference between living in the Midwest and New York.

Emily Heller’s style was a lot less formal and more chatty and friendly, but with a sarcastic edge that reminded me a little of Judith Lucy. She went straight into what it’s like being American out in the world and feeling embarrassed about her President. Emily talks about her therapy and the more popular topic of dating, which seems very American but with Tinder young Australians are now doing this too.

Liza Treyger crossed the line from friendly to intrusive and took dating talk to another level, straight sex talk. It started fairly rough and a bit all over the place with drinking and the Holocaust but she gradually warmed to her topic of discussing sex openly with a confronting honesty and feminist edge. This is where she shone and either repulsed or won the audience. Most young female comedians are currently doing stuff about their sex life (thanks Amy Schumer) but this was some of the best I’ve seen. Outrageous with something to say, rather than for simple shock value and she was funny as well which is always good in a Comedy Festival show. She worked the crowd, trying to be inclusive by getting the audience involved with their opinions, which I’m guessing is much more difficult here than in America.

Jak Knight was all enthusiasm and a little confused about the lack of an equal level of enthusiasm he was getting back from the Sunday night Melbourne crowd. He notes amusingly that we have come to see Americans like they were on display in a zoo. He was very political, astute and funny, reminding me of a young Chris Rock. Jak was certainly dropping the N word more casually than we are used to hearing in a room we are in. His new President is making him keen to stay and we’d be pretty happy to keep him.

This is a pretty high level of performers brought out this year and a great chance to catch what’s happening in the American comedy scene, because at the moment you wouldn’t really want to go over there…

Headliners with this line up is on at the Lower Melbourne Town Hall until April 9
https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2017/shows/headliners

Guy Montgomery – Let’s All Get In A Room Together

By Elyce Phillips

After being nominated for Best Newcomer at last year’s MICF, Guy Montgomery is back with his likeable, boisterous style of stand-up in Let’s All Get In A Room Together. It’s a delightfully silly, crowd-pleasing hour from a confident performer.

Montgomery is at his best when he’s riffing in between his longer chunks of storytelling. His patter up top about the room, his fancy water and the joys of the Yarra River was hilarious and grabbed the attention of the audience early. There’s no particular theme to Let’s All Get In A Room Together. Montgomery discusses a whole range of topics, from his accommodation situation here in Melbourne to his sexual awakening as a young boy in New Zealand. It’s all delivered with a level of enthusiasm and energy that’s utterly contagious. Montgomery had the sold-out room chuckling the whole way through.

There were a few minor bumps in what was otherwise a very strong show. Some of the stories in Let’s All Get In A Room Together strike an odd tone – they’ve got enough weird details to be unbelievable but don’t push that weirdness hard enough to be completely surreal. Another discordant note came about three quarters of the way through the show, when Montgomery told a joke that neatly tied up all the threads he had discussed so far. It felt like a natural ending point, so when the show continued on it felt overly long, despite the material in the final minutes being of quite a high quality.

Let’s All Get In A Room Together is thoroughly entertaining and Guy Montgomery is a stand-up with a lot of promise. Pacing quibbles aside, Montgomery has got buckets of charisma and will no doubt get bigger and better in coming years.

Let’s All Get In A Room Together is on at The Forum Ladies Lounge until April 23
https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2017/shows/let-s-all-get-in-a-room-together