Navigating the back alleys of Melbourne, passing malodorous dumpsters, scurrying rodents, graffiti and poster encrusted brick walls, one wonders what awaits in the bowels of the Duckboard. There awaits Cliffy, Relaxed and Comfortable, nay, almost comatose, in his backyard bungalow in the leafy but riot-ridden suburb of Bogan Villa.

The set is simple, clever and functional. Cliffy’s entrance is imaginative and throughout the performance the multimedia aspects propel the storyline: involving several other characters, whilst confining the onstage cast to two. The characters are cliched but effective, if at times overstated (There’s a limit to how much fart humour a man can stomach.). Cliffy’s missus, Love, is similarly trite but is she merely there to facilitate character changes for Cliffy? She needs more thematic individuality and a more nagging performance to provide contrast to Cliffy’s phlegmatic disposition.

This is not stand-up (thank God): it is almost a mini musical. The writing is satirical, humorous and a sardonic comment on the state of life in the ‘burbs. The melodies are catchy and the lyrics clever, but the use of mics in such a small space is unnecessary and distracts from the natural intimacy of the setting. I would not be surprised if in the near future it is revealed that Cliffy is the lost love child of Norman Gunston and Dame Edna. In the mean time, while the show is not a riot, it is an insightful and entertaining glance into the backyard bungalows of the Australian mind.