Tom Ballard begins his show by cheerfully reeling off a list of homophobic epithets. Faggot, homo, queer, gaybo – none of these bother him, mostly because he finds them amusing. Being young, gay and from Warrnambool can’t be easy, one imagines, but Tom is hardly an angst-ridden victim. His comedy is not abrasive, activist, or even particularly racy. Instead it is friendly and matter-of-fact, showing a lively curiosity about human behaviour. Ballard spends much of his show cheekily poking fun at the ridiculous aspects of gay and straight culture alike, breezing through such topics as coming out to parents, his own internalised homophobia, and the sheer nerve of straight men who do musical theatre.

The intimate space was packed with an enthusiastic crowd, a large portion of which appeared to know Tom. “Settle down,” he said to them when they began to laugh in anticipation of an anecdote, “some of these guys haven’t heard this one.” It’s a pity he acknowledged this so often, as it had the unfortunate effect of making other members of the audience feel excluded from the clique. In any case he had no need to excuse their hilarity at his jokes; it’s clear that even a crowd entirely unfamiliar with Tom and his Warrnambool milieu would delight in his material.

He’s also self-deprecating more often than he should be. “Tough crowd,” he said after a line fell flat – which it wasn’t. It was a very friendly crowd, and putting himself down only makes him look worse than he really is.

For the majority of his performance, however, Ballard’s demeanour was entirely confident. His easy patter sounds well-rehearsed but natural, and his show has pace, energy and enough structure to satisfy.