Following from what can only be described as a dream first year, the Perth International Comedy Festival (PICF) is back again with a stellar program. With a lineup consisting of some of the funniest comedians from around the world, by the end of the festivals' two-and-a half-week run, Perth audiences are sure to have had their proverbial sides split from laughter.
Held in venues around Mount Lawley, this year's PICF features comedians from the USA, England, Scotland, and Pakistan with performers like Stephen K Amos and The Pajama Men returning from last year's inaugural festival. There are also a swag of rather special comedy events to be held outside the Mount Lawley hub, including Tenacious D, The Wayans Brothers and Tracey Morgan. And we can't forget some of Australia's most-loved comics from both the national and local front such as Joel Creasey, Tom Gleeson, Tien Tran and Felicity Ward to name but a few.
Highlights amidst the program are the UK's Jimmy McGhie and Australia's Hannah Gadsby and Lawrence Mooney - and all three say they're excited about coming to Perth to share the good humour. While Gadsby and Mooney are no strangers to Perth, it is McGhie's first time here and he says he is looking forward to seeing our sunshine state and maybe reconnecting with some people from the motherland.
“I have heard that Western Australia is very beautiful, and I also know that there is quite a big contingent of Poms that have moved out there. It should be quite fun to play to the ex-pats, if they wish to come, and remind them of how miserable it is back home and what a great decision they made to sell up in the first place,” McGhie says with a laugh.
But don't think McGhie's show is just for his countrymen. No, the subject matter of his show can be universally understood.
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“You could describe me as a mildly cantankerous sort of whinging Pom. I am also a bit of a technophobe so a lot of my material is extended rants on social media and mobile communications and smart phones and basically the etiquette and manners around that. A lot of it bothers me.”
“I'm not an old fogy but I might be described as a young fogy in some of my worldviews. But don't worry, I do have jokes about it, you aren't just coming to a lecture.”
Someone who's also taking a step back from technology and reminiscing about the good old days is Mooney, with his show Lawrence Of Suburbia.
“There are three parts to it. The first is all about that nostalgic look back at growing up as a child in the suburbs in the 70s and then having to turn your back on that and leave in order to establish your own identity and be cool and live in the inner city. Then the inevitable coupling and children and settling down and the return to the suburbs,” explains Mooney.
Mooney says his own experiences over the years are what he draws on when devising his material, likening a comedian's mind to a toy box.
“Comedians are like bowerbirds or Dads with garages with that bit of wire or wooden skirt that will 'come in handy, you'll see'. And then one day you ask for a bit of help and they pull out that bit of wire and its like, see I told you that bit of wire would come in handy. Comedians are kind of the same in that you see things and you may not be sure of the angle, but sooner or later you start to go through it all. It's like a toy box jumbled full of lines and half thought of ideas and it all comes in handy eventually.”
It has well and truly come in handy for Mooney who is at the top of his game, as Gadsby describes. And Gadsby herself isn't doing too bad either, although she is quick to point out, happy stories aren't very funny.
“I tell stories and I feel like my life is nice at the moment, but there is no comedy in that,” Gadsby says.
“I like to say yes, my life is nice, so let me tell you about the shittiest times I have had. Here is when it hasn't been nice because that is the funnier than 'I'm happy' and telling stories helps put a nice little fence around trauma, so that is what is happening there.”
“So really, my show is like a petting zoo of my biggest traumas. All safe and cuddly and fine but it will bite.”
While these performers are vastly different in their approaches to comedy, the one overarching element bringing them together is PICF and the mindset of a festival.
“Comedy can be quite lonely when you are off on your own all the time and you're not always on tour with other comedians. Whereas festivals are like a big class outing, everyone is there and there are lots of people you can talk to and you can go and see lots of shows”, says McGhie.
Mooney shares McGhie's sentiment, adding that the collaboration is a bonus too.
“You're surrounded by your peers, so it is nice to be able to exchange ideas and what has gone on as people who share the same type of experiences. Plus there is the added dimension of the after party most nights and it really does have that festive feel to it, gathering together and sharing that common thing we have.
“Most often comedians who are working throughout the year are working on their own most of the time. You travel alone, perform alone, go home alone and it can be quite draining, so it is nice to be around like minds. The other thing about the festival is you have the support of the festival itself which is just second to none as far as Perth is concerned.”
As someone who has done the festival circuit a few times, Mooney also offers some advice to festival patrons.
“Go and see someone you have never heard of before, just take a punt. It can be such a nice surprise and when someone is new they take risks that you don't take further down the track because you can get quite calculated in the way go about things because you have this experience and know all the things that can go wrong.
But when you are truly raw, you will jump into the fire and it can just be a really exciting night out to see something pretty new just come together.
“In fact you will probably see the surprise on the performers face as the audience starts to lap it up and they start to grow a couple of inches, it is like watching a foal stand up.”
WHO: Hannah Gadsby, Lawrence Mooney and Jimmy McGhie
WHAT: Perth International Comedy Festival 2013
WHEN & WHERE: Wednesday 1 May - Sunday 19 May, The Astor Theatre - for a full list of venues, visit PICF
