Reviews, week 3-9 November 2008
Ah, the US election threw my writing schedule totally out of whack! Apologies for the delays.
Acts reviewed: Axis of Awesome, Sugar Sammy, Harley Breen, Jacques Barrett, Diverse Theatresports(R) Players (Cranston Cup)
Venues: Marble Bar, Comedy Store, Belvoir Street Theatre
Tuesday 4th November: Axis of Awesome @ Marble Bar
Jordan Raskopolous, Benny Davis, Lee Naimo
It was a lively crowd after the Melbourne Cup, in the mood to heckle and tease. They were appreciative nonetheless, and particularly enjoyed the high volume, high energy set from musical comedy trio Axis of Awesome. Some of their material would have been appreciated more by a less boozy crowd, but they still got most of the jokes. I arrived late for this show, so failed to see the supporting acts, sadly.
The banter between the personas the Axis members display is fun - Lee Naimo interjects deadpan sardonic quips, Jordan Raskopolous flips between lead singer swagger and Harry Potter fanboy, while Benny Davis plays the long-suffering straight man who occasionally turns the tables. I was expecting some such schtick, but I wasn’t expecting quite the tight musical technique that was part of the package, particularly the complex harmony work. Their finale, a medley of pop songs in a quirky context that turns familiar lyric snippets into comic punchlines, was a huge crowd-pleasing tour de force, and is clever on so many levels that I for one am keen to hear it again soon so I can appreciate the layers I must have missed the first time around.
Next Show @ Marble Bar: Tues 18th November, Kitty Flanagan headlining, supported by Dave Bloustien, Amanda Gray and Dave Smiedt as MC. [details]
Wednesday 5th November: Sugar Sammy @ Comedy Store
A capacity crowd of loyalists, alerted through email lists and online social networks, descended upon the Comedy Store for a soft launch of the re-opened comedy stalwart. It was obvious that the audience was thrilled to be back in a favourite room and looking forward to some good rude fun. The comedians felt the vibe and paid it back with interest.
Jacques Barrett as MC couldn’t put a step wrong, even when he played the arsehole card in the second half of the show so that he had to win the audience back. Harley Breen’s highly physical storytelling style of stand-up was an effective contrast, particularly with his stock of impressions and abrupt jumps into surreal absurdity before coming back to another story full of comic dilemmas. His set flew by far too fast.
Then it was time for Sugar Sammy, a very confident and smooth comic. Sufficient reference was made to his Canadian nationality and Indian immigrant ethnicity to set the scene for the crowd, but his strength really lies in his more global observational insights, and in particular how he presents gratuitously offensive quips to the crowd, shocking them and then hauling them back onside by holding the nature of the offense up to comic examination. To be honest, it’s not my favourite stand-up style, but I still laughed (a lot). I admire the mastery of those who can pull it off, and it certainly went down well with the crowd.
This week Tuesday to Saturday: headliner Oz legend Peter Berner, supported by New Yorker Jamie Kilstein and MC’ed by Dave Williams [details]
Sunday 9th November: Theatresports(R)Cranston Cup Semi-Final @ Belvoir
It’s the annual comedy tradition, now in its 20th year, where teams of improvisors compete to win glory and custody of possibly the biggest and certainly the ugliest trophy in Australia. Theatresports(R) is the origin of the improvised games seen regularly on the small screen in Thank God You’re Here, Whose Line Is It Anyway? and Comedy Slapdown.
Seeing it live brings a whole new level of engagement as the audience is caught up entirely in whether the improvisors can create a scene that satisfies the three judges on the night - respectively Narrative, Entertainment and Technique. The Technique judge is the toughest, now known as The Hanging Judge and shielding hir identity in a cowled hood and mask, the better to cope with the compere egging the crowd on to boo hir mercilessly for hir ruthlessness.
David Callan and Monique Dykstra cracked the whip on the improvisors, keeping them on track and within time, while Benny Davis provided the improvised musical soundtrack that set the moods. The four teams provided an assortment of veteran players and promising relative newcomers, and in the first half of the show, with the shorter games, scoring was very tight. After the interval, some longer and more complicated games are played, and this is where the veteran players shone. In the end, the “North Sho’ Pimps” team comprising Jon Williams, Steve Lynch and Jeremy Yao won the day (their “Puppets” scene set in the circus was a highlight) followed closely by the “Super Love Ultimate Team” comprising Lee Naimo, Jordon Raskopolous, Steen Raskopolous and Simon Greiner, who unsurprisingly excelled in all musical challenges.
Next Theatresports(R) Show @ Belvoir: Sunday 16th November, see schedule of players at Impro Australia.
Image credit: originally uploaded by Mediak Services and used with the permission of Michael Kery
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