Vir Das is India’s highest-selling English speaking standup comedian, selling out shows in India, the U.S., and the U.K. He recently made his way to Australia for a series of shows in Sydney and Melbourne, where he performed to full…
Matt Harvey is a stand-up comedian. He also has a retail job that also involves fending-off children (he conspicuously evaded attempts to clarify exactly how he makes a living). Above all, he is white. Just look at his name –…
I left the best ’til last. As my final show of Melbourne International Comedy Festival, I saw Canadian ‘gentleman elf’ Deanne Smith (good friend of 2017 Barry winner Hannah Gadsby) in her latest show, Post-Joke Era. Openly lesbian, Deanne’s onto all…
Phill Jupitus has finally got himself back to Australia, after a 30 year absence. I missed seeing him last time, as I had not yet been born, but I’m mighty glad I got to see him in his new show…
The Melbourne International Comedy Festival show Cooking For No One showcases Carlo Ritchie’s lovelorn laments. The man is confident, competent, and his stories of failed romance very funny. Ritchie is suave, urbane and coolly mesmerising. His delivery is calm and measured, and he…
Jennifer Wong kookily stands before us with her cardboard box ‘cassette player’ beside her, in her one-woman standup show How To English Harder. Her quirky little Melbourne International Comedy Festival show pokes fun at the lucrative field of foreigners learning…
I really really love Lady Sings It Better. Story Time is the fourth show of theirs I’ve seen and they keep getting better than you can believe. It especially helps that people just don’t seem to stop writing horribly sexist/creepy/aggressive songs…
Melbourne-based actor, writer, and director Hayley Butcher presents her solo stand up debut Pressure Down at this year’s Melbourne International Comedy Festival. Best known as half of comedy duo Dash and D’Bree, Butcher is no stranger to the Melbourne scene, having…
Jude Perl dances along the line between comedy and Serious Art, and it’s a great jig to watch. Roommates: The Musical is a one-woman show, the stage simply set with a grand piano, a couch, and a broom. The rest of…
Twins, presented by Jess Perkins and Naomi Higgins certainly packs a punch… and a slap. Jess and Naomi are both RAW Comedy National Finalists, from 2015 and 2016 respectively. Quite frankly, it is very hard to believe that these two…