Rosie Waterland is that self-proclaimed, anti-cool girl that many people have come to know and love thanks to her recaps of the TV show, The Bachelor. This writer and comedian has recently published her second memoir, Every Live I’ve Ever Told and is touring a one-woman live show called Crazy Lady where she breaks down the stigma of mental illness and handles this hard subject with a deft and comedic touch.
The show, at The Concourse, sees Waterland reclining on a lounge and drinking champagne in a style that screams all-class. It’s obvious that she was keeping things casual and conversational, just like you would with a group of friends. She made herself comfortable in order to discuss a topic that was anything but.
For the next 90 minutes, she went through her different life experiences that lead to two nervous breakdowns and multiple suicide attempts. The fact that the most recent episode came off the back of some of her most successful, professional years- is really quite heart-breaking and tragic.
Waterland’s family are well-acquainted with mental illness. Her mother is bi-polar, her father a schizophrenic and both parents have dealt with alcoholism. Her first memoir tackled a lot of this stuff but was also a story about rising above the associated baggage of a traumatic childhood. But when her best friend suddenly passed away Waterland was sent spiraling back into an abyss of depression.
This show teaches us how to be more sensitive and kind to people with mental illness. It’s also quite eye-opening in its frankness and brutal honesty. The fans craving lighter moments were also given these thanks to Waterland’s quirky and sarcastic asides about things like Dr Pimple Popper, farting in relationships, and dealing with pubes. These jokes weren’t necessarily the most high-brow material but it did prove fun for people that enjoy this kind of humour, as well as hearing Waterland’s thoughts on more trivial topics.
In Crazy Lady Waterland proved that she should be applauded for daring to be so bold and open about her experiences with such challenging things. We all learned a lot, not just how to blow-dry pubes. Yes, you read that right.
Natalie
-Natalie Salvo is a foodie and writer from Sydney. You can find her digging in vinyl crates at good record stores.
Rosie Waterland’s Crazy Lady tour runs 1 September-27 October. Buy Tickets now.
