Julz Burgisser He’s British (but don’t worry, he hates himself too), he wants visit Kenya to build a well and he may or may not be in the witness protection program. With these facts and more James Acaster builds a hilarious show around the idea of chucking in the towel on life and having a Reset. Haven’t we all wanted to start again? A brilliant show about a do-over with an actual do-over inside, a show so good that seeing Acaster live is a highlight of my year let alone the Festival.
Courtney Rose Brown Taking Off the Bird Suit, is an improvised show (that rests very comfortably as part of the NZ International Comedy Festival) featuring the talents of an all female improv troupe! Staring Alayne Dick, Clare Kerrison, Dianne Pulham, Gabby Anderson, Harriet Hughes, Josephine Byrnes, Kate Wilson, Maria McWilliams and Susan Williams.
Jennifer O’Sullivan, welcomes the audience in as the MC (and also director of the troupe) to a very energetic and nearly full house. O’Sullivan placed an energy on top of this, creating a supportive and enthusiastic environment as she mentioned the range in experience of the improvisers.  by Laura Ferguson“I *am* going to make fun of something you believe in,” Neil Thornton chortles at us during A Cynic’s Guide to Enlightenment after another successful wave of laughter has permeated the audience, punctuated with a couple of good-natured, ‘ooh’s’.
Dell Mitchell Wes Barker takes the stage with confidence and begins by getting us to rate his appearance, he takes the low(ish) ratings well and this sets up what will become a running gag for the rest of the evening.
Zoe Joblin Touted as a World-class comedy showcase, Comedy All Stars is warmly led by MC Rich Wilson. The four comedians bring an air of professionalism not seen in some of the more “Raw” events at the Festival. Despite this, I have to admit that I’m not expecting to be blown away by the mainstream line-up. I am aware that as a young woman I am not the target audience so for the purposes of this review I will leave some expectations at the door.
Eleanor Merton
Courtney Rose Brown  Nelson’s Refinery warmly welcomes one of the last shows from Pat-A-Cake Productions tour of Where the Wild Woman Is, with a fully packed out theatre, as extra chairs are hastily added to already long rows. Where the Wild Woman Is, is a One woman show that is devised and performed by Ingrid Saker. Winner of ‘Best Actress’ and ‘Edgiest Show’ in Nelson Fringe 2016. We enter into a pre-show of Saker interacting with the crowd, adopting a monkey like physicality, with clowning behaviour. At times, pre-shows can be jarring, creating confusion about whether or not the show has already started, or if as an audience member, you really have to pay attention to what is happening or not. Saker’s interactions however, create a relaxed atmosphere, where before the show has already begun she has introduced the idea of audience interaction, where everyone is game to participate. As the house lights dim, she has the audience leaning forward on their seats, fully engaged, as she is enchanting to watch. Dell Mitchell & Laura Ferguson Hosted at BATS on a stage littered with baby toys, the scene is set as Joseph Moore walks out on stage with a dirty diaper. We quickly realise that this is a theatre/comedy mash-up rather than a straight stand up act.
Eleanor Merton
Jonathan HobmanBe Here Now was an extremely emotional journey. Part of the grief has stayed with me after the film. More than once I, along with neighbouring audience members, was covering my mouth, as the couple received the latest of their lymphoma examination results. I developed a real connection with the young couple. They come across as extremely charming (as do their two children) and totally in love with each other. Despite the fact that you are aware of Andy Whitfield’s passing, you find yourself willing him to get better throughout the film along with him and his wife. They were on multiple hopeful roads to recovery only to have things worsen when it became clear that the cancer was a malignant genetic disposition that couldn’t be gotten rid of.
Eleanor Merton The Best of the Fest did not open at promisingly. San Fran was absolutely packed, with tables laid out in front of the stage and what seemed like not enough seats for everyone. After some stressful heavy duty scouting, I managed to find a few seats right up the front tucked behind others who were already seated. An event that was so popular that it had a line out the door half a block and had such informal seating would probably have benefitted from a couple of ushers to fill seats from the front. The show eventually started late after 20 minutes of pre-show music that was painfully loud in front of the speakers and uncomfortably loud halfway down the room.
Julz Burgisser When we think of the idiom The Wild Blue Yonder I think of heading off somewhere and never coming back, the internet describes it as when you go somewhere far away that seems exciting because it is not known. Heading into Brendhan Lovegrove’s show it explains pretty well how I felt. I’d heard a lot about his comedy and was excited to see the unknown for myself. He didn’t disappoint, he went some crazy places with his comedy but what a good time!
Courtney Rose Brown On a cold, windy Wellington evening nothing quite warms you up like a light hearted comedic musical, interwoven with feminist themes performed by Penny Ashton. Ashton’s One woman show Promise and Promiscuity, written by herself (and of course Jane Austen!) has remarkable flare in creating a sense of comfortability and community amongst strangers. Perhaps it is the intimacy of the space, or purely just Ashton’s charisma that pulls the audience in.
Julz Burgisser That’s Shentotainment is exactly what the name promises, comedian Dan Shenton being entertaining. This is a show of big belly laughs, a guitar and a stream of conscious so unusual that makes you wonder what it’s like living inside Shenton's head.
Julz Burgisser Career decisions to love life lessons, Louise Beuvink is having a Quarter-Life Crisis and she’s invited us along for the ride. Her dark humour and astute observation leads to some brilliantly funny confession stories and other sweet moments of introspection.
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