Sorry I Hurt Your Son (Said My Ex To My Mum) review | Melbourne International Comedy Festival | Trades Hall

If you’re expecting gay comedian James Barr to deliver a steady stream of dick jokes in Sorry I Hurt Your Son (Said My Ex To My Mum), a show built around the domestic abuse and trauma he experienced at the hands of his partner, well… you’d be right. But what’s striking is how effortlessly that humour is folded into the piece. The jokes don’t undercut the story, they sit alongside it, disarming the audience just enough to let the harder beats land.

Barr begins lightly, walking us through his search for Prince Charming, recounting a series of dates before arriving at the night he met Chris at a Spice Girls concert. It’s framed as a turning point, the moment he thought that two souls would become one.

Too Clowns review | Melbourne International Comedy Festival | The Motley Wherehaus

Most people will recognise Garry Starr more readily than Damien Warren-Smith himself. Garry is Warren-Smith’s over-the-top comedic persona, known for high-energy, absurd productions that parody classic works through exaggerated, physical, and deliberately chaotic storytelling. His show Classic Penguins is currently playing at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, and you would be mad to miss it. But Warren-Smith is presenting a work-in-progress during the festival, offering audiences a chance to see another side to his clowning and performance style.

Too Clowns is a silent clown show that explores loneliness, with chalk-written words reading “Bella + Puzzo” introducing us to the characters. Puzzo arrives upbeat and ready to go, but Bella is nowhere to be seen. The show must go on, so Puzzo turns to the full-house at the 11pm showing to help fill the gap. What sets Too Clown apart is its commitment to silence and audience dependency, using participation not as a novelty but as the core structure of the piece, where the performance genuinely shifts based on who steps up.

Trout review | Melbourne International Comedy Festival | Malthouse Theatre

in 2025 Kate Dolan opened her Melbourne Comedy Festival show, The Critic, as a plant. This year, she begins as a trout, a dancing trout, while wearing a trout mask. And this time, the show is about trout, fish in general, and the idea that life might be simpler, easier, if she were one. Unsurprisingly, the show is called Trout.
 
Dolan is a stand-up comedian, but this performance marks a complete 180-degree turn from what she presented last year. For starters, there is some contemporary dancing and some rapping. But the most noticeable change is Dolan herself. The shift feels amplified by the larger Malthouse space, which seems to give her the space to expand her presence and lean into a bigger, more unrestrained energy. Dolan uses the entire stage, constantly in motion, swinging her hips, and jumping between beats with a physicality that drives the rhythm. She is loud, erratic, and deliberately so, channelling that unpredictability into a style that appears loose at first glance but is structured underneath.

Nosferatu Looking For Love review | Melbourne International Comedy Festival | The Motley Wherehaus

Nosferatu, we’re told, is the German word for “sexy bachelor”, and that sets the mood perfectly for Nosferatu Looking For Love. Tired of his old life, this infamous vampire is chasing a sea change, heading to Australia with two clear ambitions, to become a star and to finally find a partner.

From the instant Rhiannon McCall appears, the character is fully realised. Dressed in black with stark white makeup, sunken eyes, exaggerated brows, a bald cap and pointed ears, the look is striking without being overdone. The hunched neck is a particularly nice touch, subtle but effective, adding to the physicality.

Evil Dead the Musical review | Melbourne International Comedy Festival | Chapel Off Chapel

You just can't keep a good Deadite down. It's been 45 years since The Evil Dead was unleashed on cinema goers. In that time, we've had sequels, reboots and reimaginings, including a musical that was first staged in 2003. And now this cult classic has made its way to Australia, and what a ride it is. With Book and Lyrics by George Reinblatt, Evil Dead the Musical leans all the way into the madness, chainsaw in hand, splattering its way through the source material with a knowing wink, buckets of blood (literally), and enough self-awareness to make the whole thing horrifically brilliant.

Five college students: the hero, his best-friend, his girlfriend, his sister and ... Shelly, decide to spend the week in an abandoned cabin in the woods with no one knowing where they are. What could go wrong, they knowingly ask. Apart from freeing a demonic force after reciting a few ill-advised incantations, and *spoiler* watching your friends lose their souls and having to brutally kill them.

Best House Party Ever review | Melbourne International Comedy Festival | The Motley Wherehaus

In 2008, Melbourne ended up in the global spotlight when 16-year-old Corey Worthington threw a house party that got wildly out of hand. His parents were away, and after posting an open invite on MySpace, over 500 people showed up to his suburban home. Total madness.
 
Now, he might want to keep an eye out, because two Nunawading locals are ready to make him old(er) news. In Best House Party Ever, best mates Big Mike and DJ JayJay, somewhere in their 30s and 40s, see an empty house as an opportunity. The moment DJ JayJay’s mum heads out, it’s game on. There’s booming music, questionable life choices, and the kind of party energy that escalates rapidly.

Lobster in a Glass review | Melbourne International Comedy Festival | The Motley Wherehaus

Every now and again, life decides to absolutely wreck your plans, your ambitions, and your carefully curated sense of self. In Lobster in a Glass, Jenna Suffern dives headfirst into those moments, drawing comedy from the chaos when things go slightly or spectacularly wrong. Across the hour, she revisits a series of derailments, shaping them into sharp, engaging anecdotes.



From a career-ending sports injury in school to realising she was gay and later non-binary, Suffern’s life has been stopped in its tracks more than once, requiring several realignments along the way. Through it all, she mines these disruptions for humour, turning detours into stories that are recognisable and somewhat absurd.