Jenny Nimon Uther Dean’s ‘Elevation’ is a piece of classic, warm stand-up comedy that lifts the room. Its lightness is exactly what Dean says he is aiming for, following a heavy season of his 2018 NZICF show My Fat/Sad, and while ‘Elevation’ does dip into some serious content, its playfulness is what makes it most memorable. Over the next hour, Dean takes us on a surprising journey with the oddly thorough dissection of the U2 song ‘Elevation’.
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by Laura Ferguson  Eli Mathewson is a queer, geeky, boardgaming, Classics degree holder who has never used it until now with his new show Myth and Legend. I am a queer, geeky, board game-hoarding, Classics degree having person myself. When I read the synopsis for Mathewson’s show, I didn’t just think Cool, that sounds like me, I thought, Holy Elysium fields, this IS me. I am almost definitely going to be biased towards this show so I brought a non-ancient history obsessed friend along as a gauge for universal hilarity.
by Laura Ferguson  How could I possibly resist a show that has a cute, little, orange kitteh on the poster? For me, it’s impossible, so along I go to Brendon Green’s Of Consequence. Having seen Green a couple of years ago with a very feline-themed show, I was looking forward the the comedian’s brand of storytelling humour. Sitting down, I feel that same familiarity I felt last time, Green’s presence is fun, friendly and relaxing, like a bubble bath of comedy.
Austin Harrison Me ’n’ Ma is a wholesome and delightful addition to this year’s Comedy Festival. We are welcomed into the space by a beaming Hamish Parkinson who offers popcorn and lemonade on the way to our seats. He greets every audience member with warmth and gratitude, setting the tone for the heart-warming 55 minutes ahead.
Jenny Nimon The Good Guys: the Goodest Show in Town is an annual NZICF charity event featuring a line-up of some of the Fest’s best to fundraise for Spinning Top. This year’s diverse range of comedy features MC Ben Hurley and comedians Jeremy Elwood, Brynley Stent, Cori Gonzalez-Macuer, Raybon Kan, Rhian Wood-Hill, and Justine Smith.
Jenny Nimon Best of the Fest, a Festival award winning show, opens this year to a sell-out audience. The queue to San Fran blocks the door to Floridita’s, and the energy is high. In the late show to end all late shows, NZICF brings us the works of Li’i Alaimoana, Jadwiga Green, Guy Montgomery, Melanie Bracewell, Tony Lyall, and Phil Nichol.
Jenny Nimon PETTY B*TCHES is an energy spike for a stale evening. In an hour of sass, song, and sideways looks, award-winning Aussie comedians Boo Dwyer and Tash York run a course on how to be petty, helping the audience become certified bitches.
Austin Harrison This week, nestled on the top floor of BATS Theatre, Ray Shipley brings us what is possibly the best little comedy show in Wellington. Within two minutes of the show beginning, Shipley has an audience member literally snorting with laughter and acknowledges it by saying, “All laughs are welcome here”. This is very much the tone of the show. Shipley is mind-bogglingly comfortable in their own anxiety and somehow cripplingly and charmingly self-aware all at the same time.
by Laura Ferguson  I bought tickets to Frickin’ Dangerous Bro as soon as I saw they were for sale. I had an excited thrill in my chest to show my partner this year’s iteration of one of my absolute favourite shows of 2018. I had talked Frickin’ Dangerous Bro up a lot in the twelve months since last years Fred Award nomination for Best Show and compared every skit show since with 2018’s Humble. Now, I admit, this is a bit of a frickin’ dangerous strategy that often sets the unknowing performers to fall off a pedestal they didn’t know were they on. As I chewed my thumbnail in my seat, anticipating the start of the show with my partner jiggling excitedly beside me, I wondered if I had done them a disservice. I was so wrong. The lights go down and BAM the hilarity begins immediately. 2019’s Legacy is exactly that, carrying on the excellence the trio have already achieved and carrying it to even greater heights.
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