
Richard Ibrahim
The Pun 2012 Reviews »
I wasn’t quite sure what to think of Anne Edmonds but she pulls you in fast. After a slight rocky start, she really gets into it and then it’s gold. Anne takes you on a musically humourous journey through life during her 20s, covering unfortunate experiences during netball road trips, and amusing encounters performing comedy in outback rural towns.
Life may have got her down but she can always cheer herself up by listening to the down-heartened stories of her eternally unemployable roommate Rebecca, or feeding her addiction to Macleod’s Daughters. …
The Pun 2012 Reviews »
If you haven’t seen Carl-Einar Häckner, you should. This oddball Swedish entertainer with his goofy antics is an engrossing stage presence you won’t be able to stop laughing at. In his third Melbourne International Comedy Festival show, Hand Luggage, he examines the varied items he’s brought along in his trick-filled suitcase.
Häckner’s act is a thoroughly humourous goofball character – laughing embarrassingly, tripping clumsily over the stage, lamenting over the poor quality and style of his Ikea furniture. He is both subtle and shambolic, going from magic to slapstick to amusing …
The Pun 2011 Reviews »
Who is Carl-Einar Häckner? What lies beneath this bohemian Evil Knievel meets ABBA? Appearing first by floating throughout Federation Square and right into the comfort of the Deluxe, he serenades in the Zombie language and was put together from IKEA with an allen key.
Häckner’s approachable and friendly nature gives the appearance of a likeable buffoon and the show takes chaotic but amusing turns throughout. Having appeared previously in La Clique, but has been working throughout Sweden for more than three decades. Swedish Meatballs is a follow up to his previous show Big In …
The Pun 2011 Reviews »
David Heffron brings a geeky, Scottish outlook to the topic of the Apocalypse – what awaits us in the end? From the Mayan calendar countdown to 2012 to the Norse Ragnarok, Heffron examines the rather cataclysmic events that await us, regardless of our religion. Or are they already here? And why do death metal bands seem to know more about it than the rest of us?
Heffron is charismatic and likeable – a Glaswegian George Costanza who doesn’t take himself too seriously. Unfortunately his work here is not as well put …
The Pun 2011 Reviews »
Tom Ballard’s boyish appearance belies a maturity beyond his years. But after all, this isn’t his first rodeo. A co-host of Triple J’s breakfast show, Since 1989 is Ballard’s second solo show, focusing on Ballard’s youth, his homosexuality and his former relationship with fellow comedian Josh Thomas.
This is a show that will appeal to young and old – Facebook, Harry Potter and a Japanese cat dancing to Shania Twain all make an appearance. Heartbreak takes centre-stage, and Ballard may have us reaching for those Seachange DVDs yet. As Ballard says, ‘I’d never been …
The Pun 2011 Reviews »
Mark Butler really hates spelling mistakes, that much is clear. He broke up with a girl over misuse of an apostrophe. And so begins his love affair with grammar, and 50 minutes of brilliance and sheer entertainment.
If you’ve ever pointed out to your partner the correct use of punctuation, laughed at Redundant Acronym Syndrome Syndrome (ie. ATM Machines) or cringed at acronyms – ROFL! – then this is the show for you. This show is as much about relationships as it is about syntax – and Butler seems just the …
The Pundit 2006 Reviews »
Paul Giamatti once again proves how underrated an actor he is in Julian Goldberger’s The Hawk is Dying. Based on the 1973 Harry Crews novel, Giamatti is George Gattling, a middle-aged auto-upholsterer who lives with his sister and her mentally-challenged son. George’s only passion in life is catching and training hawks. This passion intensifies when he catches a magnificent red-tailed hawk which he becomes intent on breaking.
The film runs in retrospect, beginning with a climactic scene before returning to George’s earlier, unhappy and almost misanthropic lifestyle. As George moves through …



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