review by Eli Cairns

Cover your cabbages, open your ears!

Having flown all across the world from the US of A for his New Zealand audience, Benny Feldman happily offers up Butterfly Pavilion: a fluttery and colourful collection of jokes, one-liners, sporadic improv, and thoughtful but blunt criticism for the state of the world around us. Riffing near constantly with audience members both eager and shy, Feldman collects his scattered thoughts into a strongly paced and thoughtfully connected flow of back-to-back bangers that make the hour fly by at a smooth, butter(fly)-y pace.

Despite its distinctive name, Butterfly Pavilion covers perhaps every topic under the sun, including but not limited to scarecrows, ratatouille, Matt Rife, trees, skateboarding, progressivism, Harry Potter lego figurines, goldfish, Joe Rogan, dragonflies, caterpillars, cicadas, and of course, butterflies. This chaotic assortment of subjects, though they may sound sporadic and disorganised, are carefully shaped by Feldman into a surprisingly coherent and consistently hilarious string of jokes that will leave you giggling and guffawing and maybe craving some sugar syrup, or perhaps the gentle cradle of a swan plant.

While this show mostly prides itself on lighthearted fun and friendly audience engagement, it also has some sharp words to spare. Early on we’re given a well-pruned selection of jokes to do with Feldman’s experiences having Tourette’s Syndrome. He assures us these will only take up a small portion of the show, although he has little control over any unexpected or possibly offensive outbursts. Yet, his ticks undoubtedly form a charming part of his affable and quick-witted stage persona, as any lulls between punchlines are accompanied by a few zingers off the top of the dome. Even while broaching heavier political material later in the show, Feldman is able to lighten the mood with some well-placed jabs and a sprinkle of satire, without losing the sincerity or weight of his anger as a Jewish American towards Israel’s genocide of Palestinians, or the rise of fascism in America encouraged by the more creatively bankrupt works of certain right-wing ‘comedians’ Feldman critiques.

Feldman himself is a humble and engaging performer. Although working through a tight stream of dozens and dozens of punchlines, he’s not afraid to go off script for the riff. There are so many jokes, told in such immediate conjunction with each other, it’s impressive Feldman can even remember them, and very understandable when he cheekily asks his own audience for a little reminder over which joke he just told. He also very openly admits to the audience when he’s still workshopping certain lines, and accordingly declares if he’ll cut or keep them based on our reaction; there is no moment of the show where it feels as if you’re only a spectator in the room, because Feldman is so prepared to engage and befriend the crowd that we become a part of his craft as a result.

This emphasis on audience interaction turns more literal near the end when, after a bizarre but hilarious roll of bits about phrenology and steampunk, Feldman invites individual audience members to stand up and try on a (lice-free, he promises) steampunk costume hat. He then assigns them their own fantasy-world character archetype, purely improvised but surprisingly accurate and much appreciated by those receiving. But, perhaps what speaks most of Feldman’s character not only as a comedian but as an individual is his willingness to stick around after the show’s ended, inviting his kiwi crowd to come up and grab a selfie, try on the pervasive hat, or just have a nice chat — which is sort of like extending the show out by another 20 minutes of material anyway.

Feldman’s warm personality and practiced but loose performance style make for a funny and eclectic hour of comedy, and his efforts to connect with his audience on stage feel kindhearted and genuine throughout. As a result, Butterfly Pavilion is a shiny chrysalis ready to crack open and stretch its wings; a uniquely structured and soundly spoken show, able to take the piss while maintaining its integrity and finding firm words (and great jokes) in harrowing times.

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