Sammy J and Randy are becoming regular visitors to Brisbane, each time playing a larger venue, and it's a delight to see them play to an audience of more than 500 in the Powerhouse Theatre. The Arena Spectacular isn't a tightly-scripted narrative show like the Melbourne-based skinny man and purple puppet usually bring up north; instead it's more of a 'best of', a collection of their songs from other shows. The segues come courtesy of a mean line in whip-smart banter between the pair, the kind of lightning-fast repartee that would be difficult to achieve at the best of times – let alone when one member of the duo, Heath McIvor, is down behind a screen operating Randy. The laughs come thick and fast and the highlights include Subwoofer and the duo's epic song Aussie Music Saved My Life!, written for Ausmusic Month, in which they pay homage to (and pay out on) a who's who of Australian musicians. A particularly lippy and persistent pun-loving heckler is given a serve in improvised song form, which brings the house down. Even just bouncing off each other and riffing like this, the pair have a comic energy few can match.
Brisbane Comedy Festival, Powerhouse (finished)
