COL ELLIOTT PERFORMS AT THE GRAND By Melissa Walsh For four decades Aussie comedian Col Elliott has been making crowds across the country laugh and now brings his special brand of humor to the Mornington Peninsula with Col’s Final (Fair Dinkum) Farewell Tour.
like Pauline Hanson and Clive Palmer I just have to.”
As part of a generation of Australian standup comedians, along with Rodney Rude and Kevin “Bloody” Wilson, Elliott portrays the larrikin image with plenty of fart gags and casual politically incorrect jokes with characters like the failed kamikaze pilot, a Pakistani Elvis impersonator, and an Italian ambassador named Guisseppe Lasagne. The 67 year old funny man is performing at The Grand in Mornington on July 7 and says audiences should get ready for an adults only night of standup comedy, crazy characters, music and stories. With four generations of fans, thirteen gold and platinum albums and countless awards to his credit, Elliott is still packing them out with a sense of humor that is timeless. “Nothing and nobody is sacred at my show and it’s certainly not politically correct,” says Elliott, whose comedy started back in the early 1970s when he was in the navy and made extra dollars in the bars of Singapore and Hong Kong doing standup routines. “I still write continually after all these years and have so much material with people
Australian.”
Starting his career in comedy was a natural progression for Elliott who got out of the navy at 23 and won Kevin Dennis New Faces which immediately gave him loads of publicity. “I had no money and needed new tyres for my car so decided to enter the show,” said Elliott, who joined the ranks of stars like John Farnham and Paul Hogan who also gained notoriety through the tv talent show. “I remember I did a gay skit which was very funny but I’m not sure would go down too well these days.” When Elliott first started out there wasn’t a lot of comedians and his first tv show was on Sky Channel. “It was played in all the pubs and really took off in the early 80’s, starting out with ‘Hey you bloody mug’. Comedians weren’t very prolific and before long there came Kevin ‘Bloody Wilson’,” he said. With Col Elliott, you get Australian comedy at its best with a blend of the classics and new material. “It’s a varied show with character comedy like Slugger Milligan, the ultimate misogynist, and my roadie, Chooka Dennis, characters that have their own following. There’s a bit of standup, some music and heaps of storytelling. It’s typically
Elliott admits he’s gotten away with murder in this age of political correctness, and still does. “It’s a different game now from 40 years ago. There are some boundaries you don’t push but still take the mickey out of people,” he said. “I got a real buzz when I won a gold DVD and was presented with Carl Baron who said to me ‘you’re the reason I got into comedy. We used to listen to you all day when I was working and I decided that’s what I wanted to do.’ I thought that was a lovely thing for him to say,” said Elliott who has consistently and successfully maintained a comedy career for decades, and is looking forward to performing in Mornington next month. “I used to live in Rosebud many years ago and still have sisters in Langwarrin so I’ve spent a bit of time on the peninsula. But I’ve never performed at The Grand so it should be a lot of fun. Expect to be surprised and a night of laughter but don’t come if you’re thin-skinned,” says Elliott with a laugh. Col’s Final (Fair Dinkum) Farewell Tour is on Thursday July 7 at The Grand Hotel Mornington. Phone 5975 2001. Book online at www.grand.net.au
ATA Allstar Artists
Presented by PILOBOLUS
SHADOWLAND
SHADOWLAND
Tuesday 16 August, 7.30pm Experience this visually stunning fusion of shadow theatre, illusion and dance. Tickets: Member $82, Full $89, Conc $84, Family (4) $240, Group 8+ $84 @the_fac | #thefac
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Frankston Times
4 July 2016
03 9784 1060 thefac.com.au Tickets:
Principal Theatre Partner Frankston Arts Centre is a Business Unit of Frankston City Council
It’s a dream, it’s a shadow, it’s a spectacle. Frankston Arts Centre and ATA Allstars Artists bring you the exhilarating Shadowland from world-renowned Pilobolus Dance Theatre. This astounding combination of musicality, projected images and acrobatic dance choreography is daringly dramatic and hugely comedic. The thrilling visuals transform the human body into metaphorical themes before your very eyes. A global sensation, Pilobolus, has been experienced by over a half-million people and was featured on The Academy Awards, Ellen and Oprah. This imaginative Pilobolus creation celebrates the extraordinary power of darkness and its ability to illuminate who we really are. It’s more than modern dance, it’s innovation in its purest form.
These world famous artists challenge the edges of performance, enveloping you in a magical coming of age story told through two different worlds. A teenaged girl is transported by the shadows lurking behind her bedroom wall into a dreamlike land of darkness, light, and adventure. With a brilliantly conceived script by Steven Banks, lead writer for SpongeBob SquarePants, this fusion of dance and poetry features multiple moving screens and an original score by popular American musician, producer, and film composer David Poe. Coming to Frankston Arts Centre for one night only on Tuesday 16 August at 7.30pm, this is one show you simply must see. Tickets at www.thefac.com.au or phone 9784 1060.