[Alisso]

Another set of reviews from me. I've been busy *g*

Daniel Townes - A Monday show. A good move. The show sold out, and was really, really good. Doing a show on a night when very little else is on is an effective way to get a better share of the show-going public, and a good way to get solid crowds and wider exposure, so it's a smart move from Daniel, as well as a smart show from a very easy-going and entertaining comedian. Hilarious story about why he never made it to Canada, and well worth catching.

Ross Noble - Unfortunately for me, I don't think Ross has ever quite managed to reach the heights he achieved with the first show I saw him do - the one which netted him the Barry - so as much as I always enjoy his shows, I'm always left a tiny bit disappointed that it wasn't as good as the first one. Then again, that one was so incredibly good that I think constantly perfoming to that level would probably kill him, so I'll settle for what I got. A spectacularly funny and entertaining romp through the warped mind of a man who wants to kick emus from his motorbike.

Rhod Gilbert - A last minute decision to see this show led to a few overly honest confessions from myself and a friend. Warning - do not sit in the first row or two (within the range of the lights) unless you enjoy the risk of audience participation *g* The show was called "Knocking on Heaven's Door", and for a change, the title actually relates to the show. Rhod goes through the requirements to enter heaven, and tries to work out if anyone, ever (or at least in the room), has managed to live up to the expectations of the bible. This show hammered the last and final nail into the coffin of my childhood faith, so I have to thank him for that as well as an amusing and entertaining evening. Fortunately for me, I've been told he's forgotten the details of that night's show, audience, and confessions *G*

Jason Byrne - Jason Byrne's shows always give the impression of near anarchy, but having seen as much of him as I have by now, I'd say it's carefully planned anarchy. But the fact that he can manage to generate such a powerful sense of flying by the seat of his pants, and give the impression that every night is a totally random response to what the crowd does and what happens at the time, is pretty damn impressive. It's also hilarious *g* As his voice rises in disbelief and stress, he just gets funnier, and his vindictive hisses at the audience for being stupid or trying to make him look stupid are always fun to watch (or cause). Again, just don't sit down the front *G*

David O'Doherty - Another somewhat late choice on this night, but another show I'm glad I got to see. David O'Doherty's "stand-up", as such, doesn't really exist. He spends most of the show sitting on a chair or the stage or hovering over the chair, using some general stand-up material to link a series of cute little songs, played on the casio keyboard, a rap keyboard and one of the coolest pianos ever (you'll just have to go to see what I'm talking about). Whimsical is definitely the word *g*

Justin Hamilton (Melbourne) - I was only going to catch two of Justin Hamilton's series of shows this festival, but as soon as I got to the end of the first and realised the second and third continued the story, I rearranged my schedule. The first installment of this trilogy was not what you'd call hilarious, but it was utterly enthralling. No jokes as such, but the laughs were scattered liberally through a tale of moving from Adelaide to Melbourne, and falling in love, with a city, and with a friend. I'm really looking forward to seeing the next section, although I've heard a hint as to the nature of the second piece (if not about the content), and I know that, since the first one got me a little bit teary-eyed, the second will probably be worse *g* A masterful piece of storytelling comedy, in the style of Greg Fleet's old storytelling performances (think Ten Years in a Long-Sleeved Shirt, and Thai Died in particular), which I'm going to enjoy watching unfold. There is some suggestion that a three-hour show containing the whole story might be possible later on, so keep your eyes peeled if that's the case. It's a show that deserves to be seen in it's entirity.

Scared Weird Little Guys - The Scardies being the Scardies. They're a unique force in comedy, appealing to a wide range of people and demonstrating a bizarre range of skills in their performances. Who else would give a musically (reasonably) decent performance on whistle-pops? Or sing in harmonies with video recordings of themselves? They only had the one show in Melbourne, but they're touring regional Victoria, so catch them if they show up near you, it's a lot of fun.

Geraldine Quinn - I've been hearing about Geraldine Quinn since Silky (of Nicko and Silky fame *g*) was plugging her show A Pint of Absinthe with great fervour a few years ago. Then I saw her on Laughapalooza, performing a song called "Penis Envy", and I could see why he was so enthusiastic about her. She's got the most amazing singing voice, a bit of a grudge against certain aspects of humanity, and a fierce wit. Her show this year, Sex.Death.Bowie., showcases those aspects of her performance style admirably, and brings them together into a series of somewhat disturbing songs about life, love, and David Bowie *g* If you're a fan of Bowie, you should see the show just for the first song, and the "What would David do?" badges *G* And if you go, and get a free drink voucher (as we did), you should definitely take it up to the rooftop bar. Amazing view of the city, and a free drink! On top of an excellent and amusing show, what more could you want?

Guinness Great Debate - Topic: Ignorance is Bliss (now, where have I seen that before? Oh, wait...) Okay, so when I heard the topic and saw the line-up I was mildly skeptical. Paul featured on the affirmative team, and I've heard him give a speech about why Ignorance is Bliss already. I've read it, too, as he then converted it into an article for the paper some years later. That aside, the rest of the line-up was extremely encouraging...Fiona O'Loughlin, Jason Byrne, Steven K Amos, Claire Hooper and Greg Fleet...and in the end, I was very relieved and quite impressed by what we ended up with (namely, a new - an very funny - speech *g*). The gimmicks came thick and fast (Jason Byrne's bizarre ironing board incident was a highlight, particularly when it almost got Paul killed), and money was again given away (by the losing team *G*), and one performer in particular (*coughFleetycough*) had overslept and forgotten about the debate and hence was completely unprepared, but there was hardly a dull moment from start to finish. Once the editing team from GnWTV are done with it, it'll be a fantastic block of entertainment that goes to air (after all, if they could salvage Paul's speech from last year, they are clearly miracle workers and should be worshipped *G*). It's definitely going to air, I just don't know when. I have a feeling that the production crew don't know either *g*

Tom Gleeson - Another Monday night show (these comedians are getting clever with their shows on Monday nights *g*), and another one well worth catching whenever you get the chance. Tom is performing at Swiss House on most nights, but the Town Hall on Mondays, so make sure you know where you're going *g* The show deals mostly with his experiences while performing to the troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, an experience which immediately lends itself to comedy, as the army has very little sense of humour about itself, and there's little as funny as someone who doesn't know how funny they're being. Side stories about a prank his friends pulled (BRILLIANT, but I'd have to kill anyone who tried something like that on me), and how and why he bought a Monaro (a lovely little heartwarmer of a tale, oddly enough), all fitting together into a very strong and positive show. Although the highlight on our night came from an audience member in a wheelchair who had gotten lost in Parliament House on a year six excursion, and was rescued (sort of) by John Howard, after running over Peter Costello's foot *bg*

Tim Minchin - People keep asking me, after they've heard I saw Tim's show this year, "Is it worth seeing?". This is a difficult question for me to answer, because what they really want to know is, "Should I pay money to go and see him?", and I don't know how much they enjoy his comedy. Because I'd go and see Tim Minchin if it was just him faffing around on a keyboard for an hour, no pre-planned show. In case that doesn't make it obvious, I'm quite the fan of Mr Minchin's work *G* But yes, this year's show is a "best-of" show based on the songs from his last two comedy festival shows. If you saw them both and thought "that'll do me", don't bother going again. If you really enjoy listening to his songs, no matter how many times you've heard them, definitely go. If you've never seen him, WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN??? Go and see him immediately and witness one of the finest musical comedians this country has ever produced.

Dave Callan - Wins my award for the best show name of the festival - "Dance of the Flame Retardant Monkey". But the show is far more serious than the name would suggest. Dave's philosophies on life and his attitudes to the injustices in the world take centre stage for this slightly preachy piece dealing with reincarnation, selling your soul, self-realisation and generally doing the right thing in an unpleasant world. The message is wonderful, and I'm right alongside it, and I really enjoyed the show as something that made me think as well as laugh, but there were those on the night who would argue there was a little too much thinking, and not enough laughing. Will probably cop a bagging from both comedy fans who think it's too serious, and left-wing people who think it's too light-hearted. But if you stand on the line between those two sections, this is definitely the show for you.


There will be more reviews later as I get through more of the shows on my list *g* And as a sidenote to my last set of reviews, I should have mentioned that we did see "Re-Educating the Planet" on the first night of the run, and as such, it was still in the development stages. I have already heard that it has improved in structure since I saw it, and I'd recommend it even on the basis of what I saw *g*