Category: Stand-Up

By Eli Cairns Sometimes mourning means taking the piss. Alice May Connolly’s BOX, fittingly named after its writer-performer Alice May Connolly (and her box) is a warm and heartfelt reflection on grief and loss, buried inside a sharp and enthusiastic pisstake of the average comedy-slash-theatre Wellington Fringe show.  Within every family heirloom is a slightly Read more

NOTE: This review will contain mild, marked spoilers. I don’t know what to believe anymore. In a sea of zany, chaotic shows, Zach Mandeville brings Storytellers, a seemingly simple hour of stand-up to the New Zealand Fringe Festival. Framed as an exercise in anecdotes and narrative, it promises to be a tell-all of the stories Read more

If you missed this show, I feel sorry for you. On a muggy ass Valentine’s evening, Maeve O’Connell brings her solo stand-up show, Prophecy Girl, an hour-long special that thrives on lashings of energy and laser-precise wit. The Fringe Bar is bouncing with anticipation long before the show starts. The crowd seems to predominantly be Read more

We’re revving into Fringe season with a fast one. Married couple Mo Munn and Q Potts perform their first ever duo show in Driving Me Crazy, a crash course in patience, growth and hilarity. The Fringe Bar is packed with giddy audiences, mostly couples, who’ve been largely driven here by the strength of the show’s Read more

NOTE: A previous version of this review had vastly incorrect information and has been updated now Welly’s got laughs, baby. Presented by local production company, Mon Platon comes A Welly Full of Laughs, a gala event featuring Wellington’s best comics. With twelve 6-minute acts from varying schools of comedic expertise, you’re always just around the Read more

NOTE: I had to leave just over halfway through the show due to a prior commitment 🙁 Sometimes you get an idea, and you just gotta do it. That’s what the demented minds of Emma Jean, Anya Rzhevitskaya, and Daniel John Smith have done with their insanely long titled show, Comedians getting tattoed and doing Read more

Y’all ready for some pageantry? Joana Joy breaks out of her small town shell with Miss Tui Whanganui 2009, a story-based comedy special that touches on themes of beauty standards, conservative upbringings and so much dance. Tightly-paced and cleverly planned out, Joana Joy delivers a cheeky hour of comedy with her wide-eyed charm. There are Read more

NOTE: This review will not contain spoilers. What the hell just happened? EPIC WAY! I’m Gay? Oui oui faguette™ I LOVE KIM HILL (1999 version) is a wild ride through the absurd and, at times, intense mind of Liv Ward, a comedian who redefines themself throughout the entire show. With a combination of video clips, Read more

There are many ways to rebel. You could pick up a motorbike and ride into the sunset. You could form an alliance against an empire that blew up a planet. Or, in a sea of chaotic comedians, produce the most polished, expertly crafted hour of comedy you’ve ever done. Lesa MacLeod-Whiting‘s latest show, Rebellina, is Read more

Big dog, big woof. After years of subtly trying to make this nickname catch on, Kipling DC has decided to bark it loud from the rooftops with Big Dog, a one-hour special about flexing, power, and friendship. With a mix of storytelling, slideshows and sympathies, Kipling transitions between them all with hilarious precision. It’s very Read more