Austin Harrison
This is the Last Goldfish I am Going to eat for You is a hilarious title and also has nothing to do with show Grace Jarvis presents us. It is however a very entertaining title, and in that respect it fits the show perfectly!
Austin Harrison Lloyd Langford was a once regular international visitor to the NZ Comedy Festival and returns this year after a 4 year hiatus. The Welsh comedian of QI and 8 out of 10 Cats fame grace’s a humble Sunday evening slot at San Fran for an hour of solid gold stand up.
Jenny Nimon Powersuit Productions’ touring show The Culture written by Laura Jackson is a warm and pacey inside view to the relationship of two flatmates as they navigate their past traumas and dating in the modern world. It is billed as ‘a story about deep and enduring friendship’, and it’s exciting to be able to sit in on the New Zealand debut of this Sydney-set production.
Austin Harrison It’s 2022 and this year’s Fringe has over 20 online offerings, including C-Arts’ programme of international events from around the world. Finding myself in isolation because of you know what, I’m excited to take a digital dive. My first online show of Fringe is DGP Production’s Satan vs God. This production is beamed all the way from Florida, USA, and I regret that I’ll have to teach them the meaning of “yeah…nah”.
Emilie Hope When Chansons – Songs & Stories from Piaf, Brel, & Me pops up, of course my interest is piqued. I’m French, on my mother’s side, and the show is advertised as a “musical journey through France”. So, I’m interested to see how French this would be, especially as I incorrectly assumed Stefanie Rummel was French – she’s German. And in this review, the real critic is my own very French mother.
Sean Burnett Dugdale-Martin No Strings Attached Theatre of Disability (Australia), Theatre Today (Singapore) and Diverse Abilities Dance Collective’s (Singapore) show SAME-SAME 2.0 is an ensemble devised dance and theatre production that celebrates friendship across multiple borders. The piece is simple and radiates with the joy of its creators, constantly surprising the audience with the personalities of the performers.
Kate NorquayYears ago, Andi Snelling was bitten by a tick while on holiday in New Zealand. The resulting Lyme Disease left her unable to perform, unable to do much except fight to stay alive. Happy Go Wrong is the show she never thought she would be able to make. That description makes the show sound rather tragic, but Snelling presents us with a moving take on suffering - That it’s not until you are close to death that you truly know how much you want to live. The result is a celebration of life that is profoundly moving, joyful and life affirming.
Kate Norquay Oddacity is delightful, hysterical, and ridiculous. The show is a collection of circus, cabaret, and comedy sketches, each more silly than the last. It’s one of those shows that when you try to explain, you have to preface your description with ‘it sounds stupid but…’. Oddacity is the definitive ‘you had to be there’ show, and you do not want to miss out.
Jenny Nimon New Zealand Improv Fest officially opened on Wednesday night, spearheaded by Here’s a Thing: NZIF Kickoff, MC’d by Jennifer O’Sullivan. This show was jam-packed with the kind of audience anticipation that any kickoff performance should hope to earn. It felt like I was back in high school, attending my first ever theatre fest.
Jenny Nimon The Aliens by American Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Annie Baker is a poignant piece, and Red Scare Theatre Company handles its themes with sincerity. Over the course of two hours we follow misfits KJ (Jack Sergent-Shadbolt) and Jasper (Jonny Potts) as they take seventeen-year-old Evan (Dryw McArthur) under their wing, and each begin to unravel. In a fitting touch, Red Scare opens the show on Thursday 4 July, which matches up with the show’s holiday setting.
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.
by Laura Ferguson It’s finally Friday. Walking into Fat Comedy amidst raucous drumming from Peru football supporters mixing erratically against the synth-heavy 80’s tones of Eva Beva, I sigh in relief to enter the quirky comedy space. Raising the heavy curtain, my jittery, overworked-self glances curiously into the darkened room. Fat Angel has combined forces with their quizmaster, Bas Jeffrey and comedian, Alexander Sparrow, to provide after-work comedy on Friday nights and Fat Angel’s jesting blessing is one I will happily receive.
Lizzie Murray Shirley Gnome’s one-woman show Taking it Up the Notch is a hilarious, unapologetic raunchy riot. Accompanied with her glitter guitar and stunning voice, Gnome shares country ballads about sex, masturbating, existential crises and sex. But don’t worry, she gives you the chance to leave after the first song if it's too much to handle.
 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’.
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