[2013077] The Breakfast Club – Stand Up for the Early Risers
Mickey D, Lindsay Webb, Hard Core Damo, Mark Trenwith, Scott Mangnoson, Stuart Goldsmith @ Nexus Cabaret
11:00pm, Sat 2 Mar 2013
Look – it’s fair to say that mistakes were made. After last night’s Giovanni Experiment, the night bounced along at a rapid rate of knots until… well, morning came. And then I found myself, ticket in hand, trudging timidly towards the Nexus, head throbbing with the success of previous proclivities.
At least Mickey D and Boo were there to greet people at the door, ready to prop the adults up with coffee… which was very much appreciated. After a quick chat with Mickey D (always good for a natter), I navigated my way through the sea of bubbling kids (and less-than-bubbly parents) and took my seat to nurse my headache as far back in the Nexus as I could.
When I think of Mickey D, the first thing that springs to mind is his ice material – sharp and loud and profane as fuck – so it was a real surprise when he took to the stage and quickly won the younger audience over with a perfectly-pitched set of jokes that took the piss out of their parents. Sure, there was a lot of juvenile toilet humour in there… but this was the perfect audience for it. Who knew that the ultimate secret – that Mums fart too – would be so crowd-pleasing?
And as pleasantly surprised as I was regarding the host, the first guest comedian had me initially bemused – Lindsay Webb. Again, I think Webb is a fantastic comedian, with a motor-mouth and instantaneous comebacks, but to see him perform a G-rated five minutes whilst clearly suffering from a big night was a treat… even more so when he was momentarily speechless due to a relentless junior heckler.
Ah yes, Darcy – the unintentional extra cast member. Darcy had been discovered by Mickey D early on, and he was determined to play a role in the rest of proceedings. Whilst his exuberance – and innocence – was certainly charming as he peppered the performers with ADD-ish non sequiturial heckles, it made me wonder whether his inclinations now will evolve into last night’s boorish behaviour.
Anyway – Darcy heckled Webb, and his response to Webb’s comeback left Lindsay stunned with a mystified grin on his face. In an attempt to wrest back control of the situation, Webb asked Darcy what he wanted to be when he grows up: “a ninja.”
Glorious.
Webb made way for one of Hard Core Damo’s characters, Skitzy the Fisherman, who was accompanied by Pebbles the Dog Shark (Damo’s diminutive dog with a fin tied to his back). I can’t remember much of Damo’s material, because the screams of delight from the children as they laughed at Pebbles licking her own arse onstage drowned out the PA system.
Mr Snot-bottom – Mark Trenwith’s successful character – made an appearance, but the kids were still a little hyper after Pebbles’ antics to really concentrate on his work. A shame, really, because I think Snot-bottom is a great little crowd-pleaser in small doses. Scott Mangnoson’s magic was perhaps a little too subtle for the youngsters to latch on to (though a treat for this adult to ruminate on), and Stuart Goldsmith – who I’d not seen before – didn’t really seem to cater to the younger audience at all.
Mickey D rounded out his emcee duties by letting the kids in on a secret – “your parents are all going to buy you ice-cream after this show!” – before trying to win the adults back – “remember, KFC is bad for you: nuggets are deep-fried chicks.” And, in the end, The Breakfast Club managed to do the same thing that Huggers does: deliver a family-friendly comedy variety show. But an 11am start? Like I said at the top, mistakes were made.
(77) The Breakfast Club – Stand Up for the Early Risers: more silly fun with vicious heckling children. #ff2013 #ADLfringe
— Pete Muller (@festivalfreakAU) March 2, 2013