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From principal to comedian Tinwald School principal Peter Livingstone has 220 pairs of eyes watching him when he gives announcements at his school assemblies. This number of captive audience members more than doubles when he performs in Variety Theatre Ashburton shows at the 500-seat Ashburton Trust Event Centre. But nothing has ever been so daunting in his whole life as what it was on one night in July last year, when he faced a room full of 40 people at Arabica Licenced Café in Methven. Livingstone had enrolled as one of six locals for the stand-up comedy open mic night Taking the Piste, organised by comedian and producer Bec Sandys. He had signed up after reading an article in the Guardian, about Sandys looking for locals to enrol. “I thought surely everyone is going to give this a go. Surely there’s all these want-to-be comedians who think they can cut it,” he said. He was wrong about that, there wasn’t a huge number, something which surprised him considering the burning desire he had harboured for quite some time. He said he had always admired successful stand-up comedians, and been in awe of their ability to entertain with just themselves on stage, and no supporting actors or script. “That’s what the challenge is in this, that’s why I wanted to do it, because I wanted to push myself, my stuff, my originality, how well would it be received, how good is it?” When it came to the big night, he was quite daunted. This was despite his school and theatre experience, following growing up in a church family where he would do Sunday readings and sing in the choir. Of the six performing at Taking the Piste, he was up third, and found the nerves almost unbearable. “I was absolutely crapping myself, I shook so much.” His material of a race-call, with the theme of someone relaying being put into a situation they are not familiar with, ended up being a winner and he had the small Arabica audience in stitches.
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Tinwald School Principal, Peter Livingstone, is making a name for himself on the comedy scene and will open for Ben Hurley and Bec Sandys at the Blue Pub in Methven next month. PHOTO SUSAN SANDYS 220620-SS-0025
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