© Anna Kucera
Into its fourth year, the Comedy for Kids Gala returned to the 15th annual Sydney Comedy Festival this past weekend at Sydney Town Hall with a menu of wit to tickle even the smallest of funny bones.
With great excitement, as big comedy and stand-up fans ourselves, we took our littles along to see which family-friendly acts they had in store. A duo of musical twins known as the Stevenson Experience had us in fits of giggles as they found the fun in playing to their identical traits as they encouraged the crowd to spot the differences between them.
A combination of floor seating for the youngest audience members and their adults assembled with and behind them made for a thoroughly interactive setting enabling the kids to get involved as and when the acts allowed.
Case in point three-piece band the Vegetable Plot who urged everyone to twist and sprout like they never had before. A comic take on British band The Beatles, the trio had the boys and girls up and dancing with their songs about vegetables, infused with the musical influence of Sir Paul McCartney and his Liverpudlian pals.
Melbourne comedy duo Double Denim (pictured below), had a raucous effect on the assembled crowd with their brand of sketch comedy, improvisation and some sartorial musical interjections. Not unlike the brash humour of fellow Aussie comedy double act Kath and Kim, the rapport between Michelle Brasier and Laura Frew oozes the same easy charm and entertainment value.
Mickey D brought us bird noises while self-professed animal trainer Emma shared the stage and the limelight with canine sidekick DukDik and then there was some side splitting hula hoop action. The arrival of the Howling Hoopers saw a couple of unsuspecting paternal chaperones pulled up on stage to have a go at twirling a hula hoop about their middle which drew more than a few laughs from all in attendance.
Each act was on stage for around 7 minutes, the ideal amount of time to capture the attention span of the young audience who loved the continual change of pace and variety of entertainment on stage.
If you love to laugh, mark the Comedy for Kids Gala in your calendars for next year because there is nothing better than a dose of happy to brighten your kids’ day and you can bet you’ll all be leaving with smiles a plenty.
To find out more visit www.sydneycomedyfest.com.au.
Tickets for the Comedy For Kids Gala are $5 via www.sydneycomedyfest.com.au or the Box Office: 02 9020 6966. The Comedy For Kids Gala is supported by the City of Sydney.