In an impressive departure from her typical fiery comic persona, Ashley Gavin’s latest hour, My Therapist is Dying, gets deep. Through poignant stories from her childhood, Gavin turns tragedy into comedy like water into wine, resulting in a performance that is nothing short of extraordinary.
Gavin turns tragedy into comedy like water into wine
She kicks off the show with some brilliant observational humour, exploring themes of queerness, her identity as a masculine woman, and the unmistakable ‘F boy’ energy she projects. Right from the start, she forges a strong connection with the audience by playfully poking fun at herself, effortlessly granting us permission to laugh at the more intimate material that follows. Her delivery is refreshingly blunt and unapologetic and she holds the audience in the palm of her hand, eagerly anticipating her next quip.
We discover that Gavin’s father passed away when she was young—an event that struck just as she was declaring her aspiration to become an actor. With her family dynamic irrevocably altered, her therapist Fred stepped in as a crucial parental figure. As she guides us through the trials and tribulations of her challenging upbringing, Fred serves as an unwavering source of stability.
While Gavin may bring you to tears, My Therapist is Dying is far from a sob story. Few possess the gift of opening up about their past without veering into self-indulgence, but Gavin effortlessly navigates this territory. Laughter punctuates even the most sombre moments as she manages to elicit cackles at her father’s funeral and finds absurdity in the concept of suicide. There are no holds barred; she never has to fish for laughs—they come charging in like an unstoppable wave. Gavin uses her comedic talent to bring us all together to laugh at the fact that we are all just desperately trying to be happy.
This show carries significant weight, particularly in the context of today’s epidemic of loneliness, anxiety and depression. Gavin’s journey invites empathy without invoking pity—it's about forging a genuine connection. Championing the practice of happiness, she truly masters the art of finding the humour in everything, even through tears. You may cry, but one thing is certain: laughter will prevail, as it’s simply impossible not to. Ashley Gavin is a bona fide professional.
