‘If you can laugh at something you can survive it’. That’s a quote attributed to Richard Pryor, but I reckon he stole it from his mum. No one knows better how to survive adversity with humour than your mum. Laughing at the hard stuff is what women do best, and at this year’s Byron Comedy Fest some of the country’s best funny women are lined up to stand and deliver.
Catch Kirsty Webeck and Mel Buttle in Double Trouble – a double feature that showcases the prolific award-winning talents of these two powerhouse comedians. Kirsty is a gifted storyteller who regularly sells out shows at the Melbourne Comedy Festival, has been a special guest on ABC’s Tonightly with Tom Ballard, Channel Ten’s How to Stay Married and a headliner on Melbourne International Comedy Festival’s Roadshow. Kirsty is joined by Mel Buttle, the standup comedian and social media phenomenon with hundreds of thousands of followers. Her mum/Lyn character has almost literally blown up Tik Tok. She has been a regular on Hughesy We Have a Problem, The Weekly with Charlie Pickering, and pretty much every high rating comedy panel show. Mel is dynamite. Double Trouble plays Friday 2 June at The Byron Surf Club at 9pm.
If you want a showcase that gives the flavour of some of the hottest comics in the biz, then Women on Top is the show. Hosted by much-loved local legend and comic laureate, Mandy Nolan, and featuring Mel Buttle and Kirsty Webeck, along with last year’s RAW comedy winner Alexandra Hudson fresh from her season at this year’s Melbourne Comedy Festival (MCF) as hand-picked emerging talent. After four decades as a midwife and now a flourishing standup comedian, winner of MCF’s 2022 Deadly Funny competition, Janty Blair brings her stories centrestage, alongside Vanessa Mitchell, star of Tears on My Dildo, the smash hit success of the Adelaide Fringe and Melbourne International Comedy Festivals. Singaporean born Ting Lim also brings her savage wit to the stage. Women on Top is on Saturday at 7.45pm.
If you can’t get enough of Mandy Nolan – grab a ticket to the fastest selling show at the festival – The Candidate. This is Mandy’s deep dive on her run for politics at the last federal election; told with honesty, insight and outrage!
So, if you want to get mum something that truly honours the woman she is, get her tickets to see some of these amazing women in comedy. All part of the exciting program for Byron Comedy Fest at Byron Surf Club, 1–4 June.
Tix on byroncomedyfest.com.
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