MICF: The Ballad of John Tilt Animus – Justin Hamilton

MICF
The Ballad of John Tilt Animus
Justin Hamilton
Token
The Toff in Town
To 16 April
comedyfestival.com.au

Justin Hamilton

My review in in Time Out.

MICF: Justin Hamilton 2015

Snacks
Justin Hamilton
1 April 2015
Melbourne Town Hall, Lunch Room
to 19 April
comedyfestival.com.au/

Justin Hamilton

I try to never miss Justin Hamilton. Mixing stand-up with scripted storytelling, he’s written and performed some of the most memorable and publish-them-because-they-are-so-well-written Comedy Festival shows I’ve seen.

He’s been performing comedy since the 1990s and, according to justinhamilton.com.au, did 188 gigs last year and, on 9 April, was up to 90 this year. 90! There had only been 99 days of this year on 9 April. He'd have done more if he wasn't dealing with a festival flu that makes me want to make him a mug of Sleepy Time tea with raw honey and share the pile of cold and flu tablets I'm scoffing to make it to the end of the festival. And I take nights off!

On his days off, he records the very popular podcast Can you take this photo please?

If you want to learn about writing comedy, listen to this. As Dan Savage is to sex, Justin Hamilton is to comedy.

After last year’s extraordinary Johnny Loves Mary Forever 1994 (you can listen to three versions of it – with discussion – on the podcast) about going to Afghanistan to entertain the Australian troops, this year’s Snacks is less harrowing and more comforting.

It’s more traditional stand-up as he meets his audience at the door, talks to them from the small stage – in a makeshift room that’s nearer the executive car park than the spectacular Town Hall – and happily goes off on tangents, which still come back to theme and to snacks and chocolate.

Being part of the Snacks audience is like being with a room of friends as the common experiences about over thinking, being happy about growing older, being excited about being nerd, and never saying no to snacks ripple through the room.

This was also discussed on AussieTheatre.com.

MICF: Justin Hamilton

MICF 2014
Johnny Loves Mary Forever 1994
Justin Hamilton
24 March 2014
The Toff (but the show's at the Victoria Hotel)
comedyfestival.com.au
to 19 April

In 2012, Hamo waved goodbye to stand up.

Ha ha ha ha ha ha.

He did 155 gigs in 2013 – some in Afghanistan, instead of doing the 2013 festivals – and gig 40 for 2014 was the Melbourne's first chance to see his new show, Johnny Loves Mary Forever 1994, that he premiered at the 2014 Adelaide Fringe.

I'd still love him to lock himself away from stages and write, but this show wouldn't exist if he'd done that and, to be fair, he writes about EVERY gig he does on his blog (justinhamilton.com.au). Blog writing so counts – and he was very happy with gig 40, "... it felt just right."

And it was. I joked on Twitter that it was my favourite show of the festival. I wasn't joking; it's going to take a lot to beat this.

Johnny Loves Mary Forever 1994 starts with a smooth-concrete sidewalk in quiet suburban Adelaide and moves to a war zone in Afghanistan where the military cars can survive anything except a suicide bomber.

As always with his work, it's personal and exposing but told with enough distance to let his audience put themselves in his shoes and imagine what they would have or have done at similar times. I haven't been in a war zone, but I recognised the conflicting and confronting emotions of seeing a woman who has nothing trying to sell a necklace, and I remember my little brother walking through wet concrete walking home after I'd been picked up from kindy. The council replaced that block.

It's not traditional stand up or theatrical monologue. He's found something in between that's flexible and works so well for him that it's hard to imagine him doing anything else. (I felt something similar to, the first time I saw Daniel Kitson perform.)

It's so beautifully written that I want to read it, but it wouldn't compare to the experience of Justin telling his story.  He's gut-aching, mind-whirling, unforgettable funny and never to be missed.

I also talk about this show on AussieTheatre.com.

MICF review: Lessons With Luis

Lessons with Luis: Famoucity!
2013 Moosehead Award recipient with the help of the Comedy Channel on Foxtel
4 April 2013
Melbourne Town Hall
to 21 April
comedyfestival.com.au

Dear Luis

Cats are so the best pets and the best animal and they are just the best of everything!

I love cats as much as you do and would love to have one of your cat badges; I’d wear it all the time, especially to opening nights.

I also think that your show is the absolute best thing at the Comedy Festival; it's as good as playing with kittens. 

Famoucity! is as close to purrfect as a show can be, but there’s one thing wrong with it. You say that your cat, Catty, is the best cat. I’m sorry, you're wrong because my cat, Molly, is the best cat. She used to be the second best cat until last year …

This is something I don’t want to tell you, but I’m worried that there’s something you don’t really understand about cats. Your song  “Cats R Forever” is the best song ever written (and I want it as my ring tone), but cats are not for ever. You know how your mum wasn’t for ever? Well cats are like that too.

I found that out last year when my cat, Flue (who WAS the best cat in the world – and I won’t hear anyone say anything different), died. She was very old and got very sick and now I have her ashes in my living room. I’m worried that you really think that cats and especially your lovely Catty (who can be the second best cat in the world) will be with you for ever. Cats can last a long time – much longer than goldfish, long life soy milk or Australian Prime Ministers – but they don’t last as long as most people do. And that’s the only bad thing about cats; that they don’t last as long as we do, and when they die, we cry a lot.

I don't want this to upset you or put you off performing or being famous, but maybe you need to change your song to "Cats last a long time, but they don't last forever" so that it's more realistic.

Love and purrs

Anne-Marie

PS. I really do want a cat badge.

Lessons With Luis: Why didn't someone tell me about these guys when they were at the Fringe last year? 

Never has awkward been so brilliant, and I dare any show to have me grinning so inanely. 

Famoucity! is gloriously atrocious as Luis, his dad, Len, and little brother, Luelin, teach us about making movies, the three acting emotions and just how great cats really are. 

Directed by Justin Hamilton, there's so much more going on than just laughs and eyesore 80s jumpers. With no punchlines (ok, there are two punchlines), no self-reflection and no swearing, this is character comedy so perfect that it's almost not funny. Only almost. 

They don't have many shows left and can only squeeze 80 lucky souls in each night. See these three before they are forced into big rooms.

Other MICF shows, if you want to be as good as Luis, Len and Luelin, you need to sing more songs about cats, write more stories about cats and make cat badges.


Here's a picture of Hannah Norris's excellent badge. I'm so jealous.

A version is also on AussieTheatre.com

MICF review: The Goodbye Guy

MICF 2012
The Goodbye Guy
Justin Hamilton
27 March 2012
The Toff
But the show's on at The Victoria Hotel
to 21 April
comedyfestival.com.au

Thank gods that fraking Hammo is finally giving up standup.

Justin Hamilton has been doing shows for eighteen years and The Goodbye Guy is his farewell to the standup stage (for the immediate future anyway). I'm thrilled.

OK, so he's become one of the best around with a stage persona so affable that he can be filthy and he make observations so sharp that it's best to check for bleeding.  He's one of the few men who can say cunt and make me want to hug him, he lets me feel cool for loving Dr Who, understands why I fancy David Bowie, and lets me feel OK about having not really grown up and about spending too much time in the TV section of Amazon.

But every time I see one of his shows show, I want him to get off the stage and start writing more. Yesterday I read his blog and said to the screen that I want him to write a book – and a TV series and more theatre shows like his wonderful Goodbye Ruby Tuesday. When he opens this Goodbye saying that he wanted to be an author since he was seven but became comedian ... well maybe my fantasy about Hamilton the writer isn't so selfish.

You can't not love the gorgeous laughing comedy audiences, but I want Justin to reach the millions of people who are going to love his writing. Stand up has given him a remarkable understanding of story and character and he knows that you reach hearts by making people laugh, but it's almost impossible to write a lot when you spend most nights making people laugh.

Which takes me back to the The Goodbye Guy. This is a show about grief: heart-breaking, unfair, fuck-you-life grief. And it's damn funny.


Great comedy isn't jokes.  Pull a Xmas cracker if all you want is a joke. Finding laughs is what gets us through the dullness or unexpected hell of life. Comedy lightens the load and gives us the breathing space to cope. The best cancer jokes are from people who know they are going to die from it.


This is very personal piece about loss, but it's never self-indugent and his writing lets us find the moments when we know exactly how he feels because we've been there too – even if we haven't actually woken up in black face.

He talks about being comfortable in misery. It is so easy to do something we're good at and enjoy rather than take the terrifying leap to see if there's something we're meant to do. Justin Hamilton is exceptionally good at stand up and he loves what he does, but I'm certain that his best work is in front of him.

In the meantime, you've been well and truly warned. This may be your last chance to see a Hammo stand up show. Don't risk waiting for a comeback. The Goodbye Guy is a perfect coda to his standup career and an introduction to his writing that's going to leave you wanting more.

PS: For a more smutty night and awesome special guests, Justin and Adam Richard host The Shelf on Monday nights at the Toff during the festival.

PPS: And there's his podcast

Reviewing the reviewers

The lovely Justin Hamilton wrote this blog about reviewing reviewers a while back.

I've seen a few of Hammo's shows and reviewed Idiot Man Child and Goodbye Ruby Tuesday. I think he's one of the smartest writers on the comedy circuit. But I won't hold back if he ever does a naff show.

Comedy Fest cynicism be gone

A week into the comedy festival and we start trying to offend our most sacred beliefs and saying cunt far too often. I heard my first Hey Dad joke late on Saturday night and knew that there was no more fluffy bunny cuteness to be found this festival. Then this appeared on Facebook:

Justin just proposed to me on stage using the Donna and Damo overhead projector to ask "will you marry me?!" I said YESSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!

The Justins Hamilton and Heazelwood may be wondering why they are getting congratulated tomorrow (apart from having their own terrific shows), but it's Justin Kennedy who hijacked his own show's technology to propose to the wonderful Sarah Collins.

This is how good life can be when you create a brilliant show about asexuals.

Can anyone be more gorgeous?*

Here's The Age story.

*apart from a certain new baby who appeared just before the festival began

Review: Idiot Man Child

MELBOURNE INTERNATIONAL COMEDY FESTIVAL 2010
Idiot Man Child: Justin Hamiton
Token
27 March 2010
The Victoria Hotel

Last year Justin Hamilton enthralled with his beautiful theatre/stand up show Goodbye Ruby Tuesday. There’s talk that folk think he’s an idiot for going ‘backwards’ and bringing us a stand up show this year. Hammo agrees (to a degree) as Idiot Man Child testifies.

Hammo is one of the ‘oldies’ on the comedy circuit. Yes, we all grow up, but that does that mean we have to grow up?

Keeping a new years resolution to stop hating people, Hammo faced a year of finally being a grown up. A year of letting fuckwits be fucked without reacting with the pure joy of hating them... Luckily, he didn’t count passive aggressive behaviour as reacting,

This isn’t his Peter Pan story. Hammo has no problem with seeing 40 looming, but he doesn’t understand how his once drug-fucked mates partnered up, procreated, joyfully went into life-long debt and became as exciting as bathroom tiles – and they find bathroom tiles exciting.

Hey growing up is brilliant. You finally understand that you knew fuck all when you were young, learn that some beer does taste like piss and can go into JB and buy all four seasons of Battlestar Gallactica without asking for an advance on your pocket money.

Except you can’t go into JB as a grown up because you need that money to find a tile to match the missing one from your bathroom. Between you and me Justin: I’m stealing a tile from the next person who wants me to look at their renovations.

And that’s just the stories about his friends. Hamilton also faced a year working in commercial radio and had to work to get taken off air.

Idiot Man Child is uber-smart stand up for grown ups who also wish they could kick fuckwits in the dick, instead of wasting their satirical wit on them. Hamilton has grown up on the stand up stage and is still there because he’s one of the best. To anyone who doesn’t think so, I’ll make a pun out of your name, use some big words and think about kneeing you where it hurts.

This review appears on AussieTheatre.com.

Justin's blog is also brilliant .

Terrific writing tips # 3: Doctor Who

Doctor Who: The End of Time

It's a slow theatre month (and we all need some time away from analysing the meta significance of everything on a stage), we're getting bored of watching Seinfeld reruns on Go! and the leftovers are running out, so, according to Facebook updates over the last day, most theatre nerds have turned to the interweb to watch the Doctor Who Christmas Special: Doctor Who: The End of Time. Aside from the fact that the My Friends:Theatre Nerd: Dr Who Fan  ratio is about 10:9:8, the passion about this episode is as oozy and complex as an Ood's face.

I've formed alliances with strangers and scoffed at friends because they didn't blub as the hot doctor said his last farwells and turned into a school boy (whom I just want to make a sandwich for and send off to a G rated movie).

This special episode is also the farewell to writer Russell T Davies and, to my joy, much FB comment has been about the writing of RTD (or Saint RTD, as I like to call him).  More than one person said that they didn't like the writing, but still cried at the end. You keep watching and end up in tears - I know many writers who would be very happy with that result.

Us who loved Queer as Folk, Bob and Rose (which may be my favourite telly series) and The Second Coming knew that Russell could tell a very fine story, but his recreation of the Doctor has reset the bar for Sci-Fi story telling for the telly.

I try and watch his shows to understand the craft and always end up being so engrossed with the story and the characters that I forget to take notes. But hopefully this book will help me out a bit as RTD writes about his writing of Doctor Who. The hardback version is favoured by many a geek, but this new paperback edition takes us through to the end. I'm sure I'll be quoting it in furture reviews - and reviewing the book itself (my copy is in the post).

Please read what Justin Hamilton (who penned and performed my fav comedy show of 09) thought about The End of Time and RTD. May I say 'ditto' and it's also kind of nice to know that we would have been reaching for the tissues at the same time as we witnessed the deaths of Henry Blake, ThirtySomething Gary, and everyone in Six Feet Under.

What I Loved: 2009

What I loved in 2009

Reviewers: you either love us a little bit too much or we’re ignorant, bitchy wannabes who wouldn’t know art if it bit us on the bum and left a nice pattern. (Which may be true.)

This year I’ve been told I’m too nice, I’m too nasty, I write too much and I don’t write enough. So a perfect review is not too much, not too little, not too sweet and not too bitter? Sounds kind of bland, Goldilocks.

Opinion is merely that, an opinion. I don’t know anyone who writes about theatre who doesn’t love it to their very core and I’ve yet to meet anyone who has the exact same taste as me.

So, please don't trust what mere reviewers or bloggers say – get out there and make up your own mind. Just keep seeing live art. See the stuff you’ve read about, the stuff you’ve never heard about, the shows people rave about and the ones they hate. You’re not going to like it all, and you’ll disagree with what other people think, but every once in a while you’ll be left breathless or in tears or laugh so much it hurts as you’ll wonder how these glorious artists knew exactly how you felt and put it on a stage.

These are some of the wonderful and totally awesome artists who blew me away this year.

Outstanding Artists 2009

WRITER
Jackie Smith for The Flood
and
Lally Katz for The Apocalypse Bear Trilogy
and
Sarah Collins and Justin Kennedy for Donna and Damo

PERORMANCE
Shirley Cattunar, Caroline Lee and Maude Davey in The Flood
and
Ash Flanders in I Love You Bro

EVERYTHING THEY DO ROCKS
Finucane & Smith for The Flood, Salon de Dance, The Feast Of Argentina Gina Catalina, and Burlesque Hour Legends.

Outstanding Productions 2009

CABARET
Dead Men Tell a Thousand Tales – Mikelangelo and The Black Sea Gentlemen
and
The Last Tuesday Society – Richard Higgins, Bron Battern and everyone else

MUSICAL
Avenue Q

COMMERCIAL SHOW
When the Rain Stops Falling – MTC and Brink Productions

DANCE
The Oracle - Malthouse Theatre and the Sydney Opera House

COMEDY
Goodbye Ruby Tuesday – Justin Hamilton and Hannah Norris

The Best of the Best

The Boy with Tape on his Face –  Sam Wills
and
Exit –  Ghostboy with Golden Virtues
and
Le Salon – Peeping Tom

My favourite of 2009

Floating - Hugh Hughs

The 2008 winners.

This also appeared on AussieTheatre.com.

Goodbye Ruby Tuesday

Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2009

Goodbye Ruby Tuesday
Justin Hamilton
7 April 2009
Melbourne Town Hall

Totally blowing me away this festival are artists who are grabbing their genre and recreating its form. There will always be an audience for disposable stand-up rants, but Justin Hamilton is one stand-up who knows we deserve more and trusted himself to create it.

A love story that soars and hurts as much as love, and a love story about Melbourne (where so many wanderers have found home), Goodbye Ruby Tuesday is intelligent and surprising story telling, that combines theatre with stand up as originally and perfectly as the first person who added chilli to chocolate.

As Jason Harrington, Hamilton explores and satirises stand-up, himself and punters who don’t get that it’s all an act. But it’s really Ruby’s story. Hamilton wrote Goodbye Ruby Tuesday for Adelaide actor Hannah Norris. Obsessively organised, stuck in work hell and desperately lonely, Ruby finds herself at her first ever stand-up gig and meets Jason, who sends her back to “boredom, obsessive roundabouts and Fyshwick” (aka Canberra) for her school reunion.

In a festival overflowing with amazing writing, Goodbye Ruby Tuesday rises to top. I’d love to see it develop in a theatre season, but it’s designed to travel, with content that can adapt and change (Facebook may be the new comedy black this year, but will be beige before we know it), a rock-solid story base and awe-inspiring performances from Hamilton and Norris that ensure that Jason and Ruby will continue to touch the hearts of anyone who meets them.

I remember Hamilton when he was doing any gig he could get in Adelaide. He was sweet, funny and a bit scared to let go of the microphone and move. Ten years later ... WOW. It takes grunt, determination and hundreds of gigs to be this good. It’s a great reminder to let emerging performers make mistakes and remember that experience can turn comedians into artists.

This review originally appeared on AussieTheatre.com.