8:15pm 7 April, Supper Room, Melbourne Town Hall
It feels like I've gone through my life only thinking I knew about comedy. And the.n Tig Notaro came to town and totally schooled me. Actually she schooled us all.
It's been a really long time since I've heard a whole room roar, snort, guffaw, yelp and sigh so much. She's listed as deadpan but that doesn't even begin to describe her. Descriptions will never do this show justice.
That might sound like a cop-out. "Come on, Josh. It's your fucking job to describe things so we know what to expect." The problem is that Notaro knows that the one important part of her job is to subvert our expectations. She is always one step ahead. Every single joke is perfectly crafted to mess with the audience.
There's no messing with themes to combine the show together. She's not a theme-style comedian. She moves too quickly for that and can't be tied down to a single concepts. Even her one liners take small diversions. I know what you're thinking: "But Josh, they're one liners. There's no room for a diversion." Let me tell you, friends. She's found a way.
She is an extraordinary user of her craft and an absolute pleasure to watch. My cheeks still hurt and I left the room 30 minutes ago.
Written using the WordPress iPhone App on the Pakenham train back to the station where I parked my car.
Read some of my other MICF reviews.