A Psychedelic Experience
Swetha Das saw Noel Fielding’s latest comedy show for the Sydney Comedy Festival.
There aren’t many stand-up comedians who are naturally capable of ending jokes with punchlines such as “my wife got off with a triangle” and “putting their willy into fork drawers”. This innate ability to perceive the world through a psychedelic lens is a skill that Noel Fielding has cultivated into a successful comedy show. An Evening with Noel Fielding at the State Theatre, last week, drew packed crowds of die-hard fans to witness hours of fantastical entertainment.
For anyone familiar with the The Mighty Boosh, the (I’d say romantic) dynamic between himself and Julian Barratt provides a wonderful juxtaposition between glitter suits and tweed. While their rapport is now missing in Fielding’s projects, the heightened vibrancy and prop/animation based surrealist humour of his work translates surprisingly well to the stage.
Gary Numan’s music greets you as you find your seats and the show commences with an introduction by The Moon (a cutaway gag from The Mighty Boosh). This brand of niche references and absurd humour carries through the show, complete with a (lengthy) joke about a dream Fielding had involving a teabag inferno, his brother Mike Fielding outfitted as Hawk Eye and Tom Meeten dressed as Antonio Banderas to be his understudy.
A screen displaying the plasticine world of Joey Ramone (from Luxury Comedy) allows Fielding to flit between reality and its multi coloured dream counterpart, just as his stand up provides for the audience. Despite rehashing some of his old material and a few dragged out sets, his interaction with the audience through the character of policeman Raymond Boombox displays his innovative improv style, and his transition into different voices is seamless.
A glitter cannon being fired from a giant penis strapped onto an audience member concludes both the show and the audience’s escapades in Fielding’s surrealist kingdom. The effervescent comedian’s style of comedy hasn’t diminished after years of televised sketches and panel shows, and is definitely worth a watch during his next Australian tour.