Sammy J's ambitious plan

The musical stand-up is planning one installment of the show every five years from now until 2058 – when he will be 75 years old.

Billing it as ‘probably the most ambitious comedy event in the world’, the show will feature such episodes as the 50-year soap opera, where punters will have to wait half a decade for cliff-hangers to be resolved, and the 50-year dance, a crew of perfromers, currently aged five, who will perform the same choreographed routine every show.

He said the idea came to him while in London following his Edinburgh festival run last year. ‘London makes me very aware of time,’ he said. ‘I was sitting on a bus filled with old people and wondering how I can make my mark.

‘I came up with the idea of starting a show when I'm 25 and finishing it when I'm 75. That seemed like a realistic parameter.’

‘I'm young and spritely now and it's a quirky idea, but in the future it could become an emotional thing. I'm prepared to take that on.’

Puppeteer Heath McIvor, who co-created the acclaimed Sammy J And The Forest Of Dreams at this year’s Fringe is also taking part in the show, as is Irish expat Dave Callan, playing Father Time.

The project kicks off on October 3, as part of the Melbourne Fringe Festival.

Published: 22 Sep 2008