Dave Warneke likes lots of things. He likes pies and bass guitar. He’s very fond of George, the keyboard zebra he has tattooed on his arm. But most of all, Dave Warneke likes facts.
The small room at the Tuxedo Cat is packed. Even allowing for a few of Warneke’s friends, roped in for media night, it’s an impressive turn-out. The crowd are not disappointed. The laugh count in this show is up there with some of the big name acts. Warnake is funny; proper laugh-out-loud funny.
In the intro he explains …

Wouldn’t it be cool to watch Axis Of Awesome with the venue atmosphere applicable to a rock gig instead of a seated comedy show? Yeah, it would. And you’d think such a venue like the Hi Fi Bar would get that, but no, the audience is still seated for AoA’s “World Tour 2006″ show – albeit seated giddily on the very edges of their seats.
As a trio comedy act, AoA have their onstage  interactions down pat, casually trading insults and beautifully harmonising. They are musically tight and their song craftsmanship …

Christophe Davidson is Canadian. He doesn’t know how to speak Australian, so has little choice but to ask his audience to help him out by reading his routine from his notes, whether or not it makes sense. And so begins an hour of sweet, clever, sometimes surreal and sometimes uneven comedy from this young man who resembles some sort of hippie tennis coach.
Once Christophe finishes playing human puppets with his audience – an all-too-short overture to his act – he manages to crack the secrets of the Australian language and …

Out of the way and next to the Yarra, Signal is a simple venue fitted for the simple lessons from a wide-eyed boy named Luis. Luis and co are embarking on an adventure to the Kidney Kingdom (riffing off of the Wizard of Oz) to find his kindly father a new kidney.
This man with the heart of a boy (his age most likely in single digits) wears knitted op-shop jumpers, his hair neatly slicked back and walks through life over-awed by almost everything, adopting an honestly upbeat attitude (until the …

In 1972 a crack commando unit was sent to prison for a crime they didn’t commit… hang on, sorry, that’s the A-Team. Let’s start again.
In 2007 crack comedian Dave Bloustein was hired to perform the ‘perfect gig’ – or, more accurately, to do two comedy sets at a Cronulla high school formal on a boat in Sydney harbour. So began a dramatic tale that ended up with Bloustien in Court needing to prove to a magistrate that he was, in fact, funny. It’s a story that takes in high school …

In the lovely little theatre space of St Ali in South Melbourne, the almost fifty year-old BBC television series Doctor Who is being put on trial by its biggest fan, self-professed Who obsessive, Rob Lloyd.
In a tightly-packed hour of nerdy humour and theatrical assurance, Lloyd delves into an exploration of fan obsession. It’s a topic both deeply personal and universal. You don’t have to be a Doctor Who fan to enjoy this show. You don’t even have to be a nerd, though it may help. We all know what it’s …

St Ali is the hub for deaf comedy at the festival. An interpreter is on hand for every show which, if nothing else, makes this a venue worth supporting.
First things first. You can’t get to St Ali’s using the map provided in the festival guide. Without outside help it is actually impossible. If, however, you catch the 112 tram across the road from Town Hall and get off at Southbank outside Coles, you’ll be well on your way. We’re all about useful facts here at The Pun. You’re welcome.
Shane Matheson …