As Anne Edmonds is well aware, the midday stand-up slot is a difficult one. Not many people can get an entirely sober crowd instantly laughing but her opening song, with plenty of hip-thrusting and booty-shaking, seemed to do it. From then on we were treated to tales of toilet disasters, hangovers and netball tour carnage, either recounted as stories or as songs, with Edmonds’ banjo playing and vocals accompanied by her assistant keyboard player, Amy Bennett.
Whilst many female comics fail to lighten up their self-esteem issues, Edmonds succeeded in avoiding common, cringe-worthy clichés. The topics discussed resonated with audience members of both genders, although some was entirely particular to her (the DVD addiction to an obscure Australian soap being a good example). Though her stories fixate a little on past humiliations which could become a bit tiresome, she doesn’t seem too embarrassed about sharing the gory details, laughing off any gravity along with the audience as she describes her misadventures. Even the bitterly entitled Revenge Song is diffused by her irrepressible mad grin, showing you no lasting damage was done.
Hilarious from start to finish, Edmonds’ eccentric performance thoroughly deserves the credit she has received in Australia. It was a great Fringe debut, and hopefully we’ll being seeing lots more of her, and Steven the Banjo, in the future.