On the 23rd of February, 2022 I marked five years of being a freelance writer with Scenestr magazine.
Five years earlier I had submitted a review for Hidden Figures to their editorial team and they had chosen to publish it. Handy tip to young players, if in doubt call back.
I am grateful that I continue to enjoy working with Scenestr.
A few highlights from 141 published pieces.
TOP FIVE STAND-UPS
1. Randy Writes A Novel (2017) – Sadly there is no link available anymore for this review but attending my first Wonderland Festival held at the Brisbane Powerhouse was magical. Part of the magic of the experience took place Friday night in the lower levels of the venue. Randy, a purple felt puppet mind you, kept us enthralled throughout our show not just making us laugh, not just by playing with the crowd but by playing with the conventions of narrative openly and moving us. This was early on in my time with Scenestr but I have seldom enjoyed a stand-up show as much as I enjoyed this one.
2. Nath Valvo (2017) – Part of the thrill of seeing and reviewing Nath Valvo’s show at this time was recognising he was about to blow up just before he did. No doubt he was well known in Melbourne at the time but after this tour he started appearing more on television and his shows in other states played at bigger venues. At Wonderland Festival 2017 he was down in the bowels of the powerhouse in a little theatre on a sunday afternoon with a crowd half full of boomers and he killed it. His talent was undeniable and the fame that followed was very satisfying to see from someone who had been there early on.
3. Love/Hate Actually (2017) – It seems the 2017 Wonderland Festival was a spoil of riches because three of my top five shows come from it.
Earlier in the year I had attended a show from Impromafia at the Metro Arts theatre and was blown away by the talent involved. Not least of which was a performer strutting out in a blonde wig and doing a riff on Danearys Targareyn from Games of Thrones.
Her name was Natalie Bochenski who I have since come to recognise as a bit of local celebrity who has worked as a journalist and media officer, featured as a television pundit and has her own podcast. Beyond all these calling cards though, Bochenski and her creative partner Amy Currie shine brightest in the funny productions they write and star in.
None more so than this production where they equally break apart and celebrate the film Love Actually. With their improv background they are always ready to react in the moment to something that happens unexpectedly with the audience but the insight they bring to such a beloved classic shows the depth of their witful intellect. Their chemistry honed across several years is a delight to watch in person as well. I have seen them both perform in other productions over the years but if I have to pick a favourite it is probably this. Love/Hate Actually has tourned now all across the country and even made it all the way to success at the Edinburgh Fringe. This is where it started though and it was joy to be there.
4. Rich Hall (2018) – I have been lucky enough to see a lot of stand-ups over the years.
I saw Tom Gleeson perform at a packed Brisbane City Hall and then share my review on his Facebook page. I recently enjoyed seeing Sammy J and Lawrence Mooney at the Brisbane Comedy Festival 2023 and found myself shrinking in my seat from laughing so hard. I am such a huge fan of both and I really felt something in the air that night with Mooney. Sometimes I have been in a small venue watching up and comers hungry and angry and hilarious.
It is hard to pick one but I found myself coming back to Rich Hall at the Brisbane Comedy Festival in 2018. Rich has been on British and American screens for many decades on panel shows. He’s done them here too in Australia for decades. He even worked as a writer for David Letterman. He has that journeyman quality to him, you recognise the face can’t always conjure up the name, you remember some of the jokes but don’t know a routine off by heart. He’s stayed around but never been too famous. When you head in to see that kind of comic especially at a big venue like the Powerhouse Theatre you don’t know if he is going to coast on old jokes or be a little washed up or something. You worry… which is weird because hasn’t such a performer proven themselves reliable enough already? Well the answer is yes he has, because I laughed all night, Rich Hall – one of the greats.
5. Dave Hughes (2020) – Seeing this performance on Friday the 13th of March, 2020 marks time in a very special. Restrictions has just been announced that day to be brought into effect on Monday. The Australian F1 had been cancelled that morning and the COVID had been taking up the news all week. The world was changing and there we were at the Brisbane Comedy Festival that night feeling it. Hughes didn’t talk about it too much but he did address what was going on. And as we all took a collective breath to see what would happen, he made us laugh and reminded me at least that in the months ahead that laughter and being together with a group of strangers is something to be treasured.
Produced by Eyeball Media Enterprises Scenestr is an online national magazine with local offices around Australia. They are the largest street press magazine in the country celebrating 30 years going strong in 2023. They’ve excelled at moving into the digital realm but they remain at heart from the streets. They still publish magazines in print for Western Australia, South Australia, New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland every month.
-Lloyd Marken
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