Demi Lardner
Look What You Made Me Do
Joel Creasey Poser
As the acid-tongued crown prince of Australian comedy, Joel Creasey has performed to packed venues in New York, Montreal and Los Angeles. Creasey’s 2016 show sold out across the nation, and he has forged himself a prominent kingdom across the Australian media landscape. Be it in comedy galas, panel shows, comedy series or reality television, his distinct brand of razorsharp wit is not to be missed. Poser runs Thursday March 30 – Sunday April 23 (bar Mondays) at Max Watt’s. Tickets are $25-$39.
Jacques Barrett Is Particuly Good At This
Jacques Barrett is an experienced circuit regular, delivering sharp and poignant social commentary between laughs. His latest show is for anyone who’s ever felt the sting of wounded pride and the blow of tall-poppy syndrome. An international headliner, Barrett has performed in South East Asia, South Africa, Romania, Prague, Switzerland, Estonia, Finland and spent a full 12 months on UK comedy circuit. Is Particuly Good At This runs Saturday April 1 – Monday April 3 and Saturday April 8 – Monday April 10 at European Bier Café, Imperial Hotel & The Upstairs Lounge at Little Sista. Tickets are $20.
Tom Ballard Problematic
Winner of the inaugural Pinder Prize and nominated for Best Show at both the Melbourne International Comedy Festival and the Edinburgh Festival Fringe last year, Tom Ballard is back with his scathing intelligence and hilarious social critique. Ballard investigates the likes of outrage culture, political correctness and race relations with a thoughtful eye. Find him at Melbourne Town Hall’s Supper Room from Thursday March 30 – Sunday April 23 (bar Mondays). Tickets are $24 – $34. 12
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When Demi Lardner speaks with Beat, it’s not too long after she’s just had her head flushed down the toilet by a housemate. She’s in Adelaide, performing as part of the Fringe Festival there, sharing accommodation with a group of other performers. “They went out so I put all their clothes in the fridge. That’s kind of what I do when I’m home alone, rearrange everyone else’s stuff,” she says. She didn’t just stuff them into the fridge, however. They were labelled and neatly stacked, she says. “I put all of his modesty clothes, which are his shirts, in the top shelf and then leggy shirts, which are pants, on the second shelf and then all the shoes on the bottom. And he was none too happy,” she says of how that went down when one returned. “He picked me up and literally flushed my head in the toilet, so good times, good friendship,” she says with a laugh. While she calls the fridge stunt a “newie” (“I was kind of proud of myself for getting it done so promptly”) she says she usually just blows up photos of herself and sticks them on the walls. “A huge picture of me staring at them while they sleep, sometimes dressed like a clown. Sometimes it’s a picture of me and my dad. That’s kind of my thing.” Lardner says the toilet flushing has been the most dramatic reaction she’s had to a prank so far. “He did it very calmly with no words, just picked me up, tipped me upside down and gave me my just desserts.”
She says driving the sharehouse shenanigans is the fact she’s mid-season and “going insane and trying to get it out in as creative a way as possible”. Lardner, known best as a stand-up, who last year was nominated for Best Newcomer at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival and won Best Newcomer at the Sydney Comedy Festival, is shifting gears with her latest solo show Look What You Made Me Do. Inspired by “all of the step Dads I’ve had in the past and how weird and nuts they’ve been,” Lardner is playing a 46-year-old man trapped in his own basement, on the phone to a life insurance agent. “It’s more sketchy and not really stand-up,” she says. “It’s really odd, so sometimes it takes a couple of minutes for people to adjust to me yelling and handing them jars of my breath and stuff. It’s really fun though.” Working behind the scenes with Lardner on this show as director and co-writer is Aunty Donna’s Mark Bonanno. “He’s maybe a bigger weirdo than me, so it’s been really cool,” she says. “I love standup, but I’ve always felt more like a weird little actor-y boy than a stand-up so I’m having a lot of fun with this show. It feels like what I was supposed to be doing all along.”
“He picked me up and literally flushed my head in the toilet, so good times, good friendship.” Venue: Melbourne Town Hall Backstage Room Dates: Thursday March 30 Sunday April 23 (bar Mondays) Duration: 55 minutes Tickets: $18 - $26
By Joanne Brookfield
Ivan Aristeguieta
Juithy
Each year, the Melbourne International Comedy Festival has its share of feel-good stories. Reflecting upon the most recent season, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better story than the rise of Venezuelanborn comic Ivan Aristeguieta. It started with a golden opportunity to perform at The Gala. He seized the moment, slayed the rather enormous room, and his popularity promptly exploded. Aristeguieta went on to enjoy a sold-out season at the festival, even adding two shows towards the end of his run. “It was a good pat on the back. You can go, ‘I’m doing the right thing, I’m on the right track.’ Finally I’ve made some money in the festival season. There’s a lot of investment for many years just to be a better comedian, and to get people to know you. To build up your audience and to get better so you get opportunities like playing the Gala.” Savouring every second of his charmed run, Aristeguieta cottoned onto another perk of his newfound success. “The joy of, ‘Oh my god, I’m not worrying about flyer-ing anymore.’ That was just beautiful.” Ultimately, Aristeguieta was crowned Best Newcomer at the 2016 Sydney Comedy Festival about a month later. But in case you’re worried it may have gone to his head, Aristeguieta is as grounded as ever. “I don’t use it to rest on,” he says. “I actually use it as a challenge, because when you have that sort of award and a sell-out season, people expect for you to be better the next year. I use it as motivation to give a better show. I don’t want the people who recommended my show to be disappointed that their friends didn’t like it the year after. It’s motivation to be better.”
Aristeguieta prides himself on honing his craft. He was able to do just that, touring with the Melbourne International Comedy Festival Roadshow on consecutive occasions. “I’m so grateful. I’ve been to all the states, all the main cities, all the major towns in each state,” he says. “When you take things to small towns, they’re not that used to having stuff every day of the year, they’re grateful and thank you for coming and there’s a lot of love after the show.” Travelling across the country with the Comedy Festival Roadshow has been perfect in more ways than one for Aristeguieta, a comic renowned for his expertise in dissecting the peculiarities of Australian culture. His new show, Juithy, will see Aristeguieta bite into a meaty subject. “When you think you’re in a bad place and you complain about it and get to a better place, you see people who’ll complain about the better place,” he explains. “When I came to Australia – a place that is ten times safer and more liveable than my country – I see Aussies complaining, because you always complain wherever you are and you want it to improve. So, there’s a lot of jokes about complaining and accepting good things and bad things.”
“I don’t want the people who recommended my show to be disappointed that their friends didn’t like it the year after. It’s motivation to be better.” Venue: ACMI - Studio
Dates: Thursday March 30 Sunday April 23 (bar Mondays) Duration: 55 minutes Tickets: $20 - $32 By Nick Mason
BEAT’S GUIDE TO THE 2017 MELBOURNE INTERNATIONAL COMEDY FESTIVAL PROUDLY PRESENTED BY THATCHERS ENGLISH CIDER