by Leo Hollbrook

What if the unstoppable force and immovable object, are both just you and all your potential energy?

Local comedian, Neil Thornton has raised a generation of Wellington comedians through the NZ Comedy School, and he comes to you now with a show about his years being told he had potential, and the crushing fear that comes with it.

Thornton deftly uses physics as a metaphor for work potential, body mass, and Schrodinger’s successful standup, while remaining accessible to the audience and, as always, an underpinning of sweetness to the whole thing.

He cares so much. He has a box with 15 years of notebooks (which were sprawled on the floor to show how much that really is), he has a 24/7 radio station with mean voices in his head called Radio KPoS (K Peace Of Shit), and he thinks he’s unfuckable (given that he says his “body count” is in the thousands, I would say this is empirically debunked).

Thornton blends grouchy old man with relatable casual comedy, to be witty and lovable. He takes us on a journey through his chaotic brain, and the end result is charming and uplifting. I genuinely felt my heart lift at his conclusion.

Disclosure: As a somewhat active member of the Wellington performing arts community, I may be quite familiar with a number of the performers in this show. Having said that, I am not a liar, and there is zero bias in my reviews, shut up.

Also, tickets were provided to me for free by the production. Literally changes nothing, though