Annie Louey – Butt Donut at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival

This year’s Comedy Festival brings us acts in yet more quirky little venues. The Pilgrim Bar, down by the Yarra, is such a place. It’s within a cozy, dark room in this bar that we discovered Annie Louey’s show, Butt Donut.

Back in Melbourne after Fringe shows in Perth and Adelaide, Annie talked about growing up with older Chinese parents (her father was 64 when she was born). She pointed out the hazards of relying on teenage boys in a medical emergency, the futility of trying to one-up a father who lived through the war, and the soul-sucking pitfalls of day jobs.

The tone of the show ranged from poignant to ribald and Annie used props from her youth, a bit of almost miming, song, and impersonation to bring her stories, which she assured us were “100 percent true… almost”, to life. She was not afraid to reveal family secrets, acknowledge her own racism, or get stuck into others for theirs. My +1 could really identify with her stories of Asian relatives, especially the exaggerated pointing.

She did an amazingly good –and somewhat disturbing –impression of an annoying American tourist, and told us how comments from an audience member led to her realisation that she’d needlessly extended her virginity.

By the end of the show, we’d got to know Annie and her family and we’d uncovered the mystery behind the show’s name. If you want another reason to go, Annie donates 10% of ticket sales to KIDS Foundation to assist children and adults living with burns and other serious injuries.

– Craig
Craig Macbride has never had a butt donut and hopes he never needs one.

Annie Louey – Butt Donut runs Mon-Sat until 21 April at Pilgrim Bar.
The venue is accessible.

Read our guide to the top shows, and all of our 2018 MICF coverage.

Disclosure: The Plus Ones were invited guests of Annie Louey.
Image credit: Melbourne International Comedy Festival.