North Melbourne local David Rose to feature at Comedy Festival

A local comedian skewering our markers of moral superiority is just one of hundreds of performers at the upcoming Melbourne International Comedy Festival, which marks its 40th anniversary this year with its biggest-ever event taking in more than 800 shows.

North Melbourne comedian David Rose is going after sacred cows.

“The absurdity of strong opinions is funny,” he told North West City News.

“We’ve all put ourselves into separate camps – we think of ourselves as anti this or pro that.”

“It could be politics, religion, diets, or people who are animal rights protesters.”

The 31-year-old seems fearless and is unfazed by having close family members in the crosshairs.

“I have some jokes about my wife doing things she thinks are progressive,” he says.

In a clip online he refers to his sister being a coeliac, “which means she can’t have gluten or friends.”

Whereas the comic, who has degrees in philosophy, law and German, once thought people were acting out of moral duty, however he now believes otherwise.

“Everyone’s just really jockeying for status in the end I think,” he says.

But the cynicism, he reckons, is good for comedy.

His festival show Meet Me in the Middle promises to “unpack our collective insanity and prove that really, we're all in this together”.

It is playing at Bar 1806 in Exhibition St, a small cocktail bar being run as an independent festival venue by a “co-op” of comedians.

At the same time Rose is staging a second show, Nepo Great-Grandbaby, about his great grandfather, a Jewish standup comedian in the vaudeville era.

While he was good friends with the Marx Brothers and Charlie Chaplin, he died in 1935, making his success difficult to cash in on, Rose explains.

He plans to donate the takings from this show, performed for four nights at Ballers Clubhouse in the CBD, to environmental charities and the victims of the Bondi terrorist attack.

David Rose is just one of hundreds of performers hitting the stage for the Melbourne International Comedy Festival (MICF) from March 25 to April 19, in venues all over the city.

According to festival director Susan Provan, North Melbourne’s Club Voltaire is a good local one to check out.

Also on her list of tips are internationals: Malaysian “weirdo” Phil Wang, New York “toxic optimist” Zainab Johnson, English animal lover Josie Long, “delusional queer icon” Sam Nicoresti and “spikey and splenetic” American Rich Hall.

Well-known and up-and-coming locals include Denise Scott, Geraldine Hickey, Lizzy Hoo, Celia Pacquola, Lano & Woodley, Bron Lewis, Melanie Bracewell, Nazim Hussein, Ray O’Leory, Tom Cashman, Reuben Kaye (pictured above) and Chris Ryan.

But for all the allure of the big names, there is a lot of joy to be had in taking a chance on someone new, Provan says.

“We always urge people to go and see some acts they haven't heard of,” she says.

“Just take a punt. The tickets are not that expensive compared to big music concerts or big theatre shows – our average ticket price is somewhere around $35.”

“You just never know what you're going to see – comedy is constantly surprising, which is great, and we need it at the moment!”

The festival is marking its 40th anniversary this year with the staging of its biggest ever event, incorporating nearly 800 shows – an increase from last year of more than 100.

According to Provan, who has directed MICF since 1994, the festival just grows organically each year, and it's the scale that makes it exciting and “something people want to be a part of”.

“That's why artists flock from all over because there's a great sense of camaraderie. People want to go and see each other's shows and they wind up striking creative partnerships and things like that,” she says. “And, of course, the audience feed off that.”

“We've got a really enthusiastic, comedy-loving audience who are up for an event.”

While there might be a lot of other entertainment around, “nothing can replace that sense with a live audience that you're sharing a unique experience,” Provan says. “Be-cause that audience will never be the same, that show will never be done exactly the same again.

“So, every show, is a special one.”

MICF runs from March 25 to April 19. •