So last night I got my first taste of the festival via two perfect shows for doing exactly that: showcases for comedians who’ve got shows in the festival to get up and sell themselves to the crowd. At Comedy Manifesto’s Manifestival there were 11 comics doing 5 minutes each, surrounded by the manic charms of MC Harley Breen in the upstairs room (a great comedy space).
Pete Sharkey (Hello World It’s Me) drew the short straw and got up first. He doesn’t particularly have a theme, just some thoughts he wants to share. A appealing ramble.
Tommy Dassalo (Out at the Pictures) was next, with a skewed worldview and sharp zingers. Well written and well received.
Dave Bloustien (The Social Contract), the only comedian in Australia and possibly the world who has had to go to court to prove that he’s funny, told a portion of his story next. I saw the whole show as a preview last month – Dave is an engaging storyteller who crafts his punchlines and segues delicately and sharply, and has a cheeky way with charming digressions.
Then came Rob Hunter (Moosecow) – one of those rarities in comedy – he punts his comic chunks at the audience and then stands there while they work it out, moving from the first appreciative chuckles into richer rolling guffaws as the ramifications unfold for them. Lateral thinking at its finest.
Daniel Moore (A Tale of Two Cities) brings us some simple stories about moving from Sydney to Melbourne and some differences he’s noted. His style is deceptively simple and worth listening carefully while he parades his observations and occasional sillinesses.
Christina Davis (Bite Me: The Bitch Experiment) has got jack of being the nicest girl in the world who’s always being jerked around, so she has decided to become a bitch. It appears that her campaign for change is progressing nicely! As usual, various dropped jaws in the crowd attested to Christina’s “did she really just say that?” effect.
Dan Brader (Commercially Viable Comedian – Comes with Free Chicken Parma and a Pot) is debuting at this year’s MICF, aiming to avoid all well trod paths of hack jokes and pandering for easy laughs – he walks his own line and drags the laughs out of it with a sharp shake.
David Quirk (Feeling Steve Breathe) describes his show as “participating in life and then reporting back”. Extremely laid back with an almost-total lack of shtick, the audience hung on every word.
Kent Valentine (How to Love Everyone (Even the Arseholes))gave us five minutes just on the perils of flyering during a festival, and the crowd was howling. I for one want to hear more of his stories.
Nick Cody (Real Men Drink Daiquiris) is another storyteller performing in a debut MICF show, and his stories are of the appealing rant variety. Well received.
Karl Chandler (Karl Chandler has 125 jokes) is NOT a storyteller. He’s full of one-liners and three-step zingers. In his show, he also talks about jokes and why some work and how some have got him into trouble. Sharp stuff.
Richard Mackenzie (sp?) (can’t find his show listing) plays up a gonzo comedian style whose adventures delighted and appalled the audience in equal measure.
Dave Thornton (Never Sweat) punctuates stories with sharp observation and character comedy. Well paced and well played.
Then it was a quick scurry for a few blocks to the Exford, for their After Party lineup. Taking place in the main bar, this is not quite the same receptive audience as at Eurotrash – these are people who want to drink and talk and the comics have to wrest their attention away from each other to listen to their set. Quite a challenge, but very satisfying when you pull it off. Most of the comics were blokes I’d just seen at the Manifestival, but one I hadn’t was Imaan (Tall Stories), a very funny young man of 19 who also happens to be a non-scary gent of Middle Eastern appearance, and aims to be “the next big thing in comedy”.
I got the chance to check out the Exford’s upstairs venue, where they’ve got a full roster of shows for the Festival happening. A beautiful room where I look forward to seeing a performance. The COmedy Festival website doesn’t seem to be showing all their shows, so check out the pub website instead.
Comedy Manifestival @ Eurotrash is on every Wednesday night from 8pm during the Festival, showcasing mystery lineup of local and international talent: whoever is around town and wants to grab the mic.
After Party @ Exford Hotel is on every night from 10:30pm, giving festival comics their chance to strut their stuff for 10 minutes. Go along and catch a showcase, then go and see some full shows for the comics you most enjoy.
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