The room at Three Degrees is a tough place for a comedian. It’s not the crowd, who were primed to laugh, but the space itself. Stuck at the back of the venue, the room is awfully lit with only a single spotlight trained on the stage – a look that suggests police line-up rather than stand-up. With four of Tasmania’s best and brightest comics waiting in the wings ready to take to the poorly lit stage, I hoped they were up to the challenge. They were. Thanks to a well thought-out line-up, the comics’ unique styles ensured a variety of laughs.

First on was Mick Davies, a self-assured lad with a tight set of observational jokes. John ‘Cambo’ Campbell followed and was the standout performer, a case study in straight-faced, deadpan one-liners. Matt Burton was the storyteller of the evening and his enthusiastic routine built to a warm and rewarding conclusion.

Luke McGregor was last on and he really was an interesting comedian. Working a nervous shtick as his onstage persona, his material was fresh and original. He took offbeat or under-examined ideas all the way through to his own logically twisted conclusion – what would it be like if make-up were a new invention?

There is a lot of promise in these four boys. They had good solid gags, and plenty of swagger on stage. Tasmania will have a lot more to be proud of than Boag’s beer and David Boon if they fulfil their comic potential.

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