At Assembly Rooms, Collins Street until
April 22, 2000
Reviewer: Kate Herbert
Rod Quantock performs his new show, Utopia, in the superbly
designed Scots Church Assembly Rooms in Collins Street. The church contract
demands that anything performed there must be "right, noble, pure and
admirable" in intent.
Of course, it also demands that it not condone immorality or
religions other than Christianity. Quantock gets a good five minutes of comedy
out of the contract itself without demeaning its writers. We draw our own
conclusions.
He is renowned for his low-tech shows which feature a blackboard
and chalk. This time the blackboard, an escapee from the Trades Hall, is on
stage but unused. Rod squeezes another five minutes out of the chalk scrawl on
it: "Free Timor Campaign."
His delivery is so easy and effortless that it is difficult
to discern when he is improvising. The gags come thick and fast. Content which
superficially seems to be innocuous and uncontroversial, tilts imperceptibly
into incisive socio-political commentary. Even the demise of chalk is a vehicle
for social observation.
No sacred cows are exempt from his sharp tongue and witty
repartee. He paces the stage in his inimitable ungainly gait and trashy,
multi-coloured shirt, pointing out to his predominantly left-wing audience the
irony of Jeff Kennett running an institute for depression.
He slaps Peter Reith, John Howard, Bronwyn Bishop, all of
the newspaper magnates, the Sydney Olympics, the internet, the millennium
celebrations, genetic manipulation, virtual reality, E-tag and Macdonalds.
Essentially, the message is that the "bloated, evil,
capitalist monster invades our homes" in myriad ways but Rod's material
never seems vicious or fanatical. It is always funny, intelligent and socially
responsible - whichever side of the political fence one sits. This show is my
first in the Comedy Festival and probably will be my favourite.
By Kate Herbert
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