Review by Steve Bennett

Fizzing with sparky energy, quirky-but-accessible Canadian comic DeAnne Smith leads an invigorating jaunt through an hour’s wisecracking stand-up.

It’s a sharp, pacy, well-honed set, but with enough room for banter, including six-and-a-half minutes carefully demarcated to cover any issues the audience might raise – a nice change of gear that showcases her successful improv skills and endearingly offbeat personality.

At her best, she cheekily flirts with non-PC ideas, from crazy Christians to rich white folk adopting black babies to her toddler intolerance. But it’s never particularly offensive, as she repeatedly emphasises that she’s the underdog, crippled by guilt over her mother’s alcoholism and so utterly self-absorbed as to be socially incapacitated. Some of her ideas might be off-the-wall, but she angles them to make them accessible – for example twisting hackneyed ideas from tired men vs women routines and applying them to her lesbian relationships.

A sort of cheery bleakness underpins much of her material, laughing in the face of our inescapable doom. Her faux pas provide more than one amusing routine, but equally she can just be silly for its own sake, without cascading into the self-indulgent.

Hooks and running jokes add a semblance of structure, from a novelty ‘don’t worry’ button to the music they play at the Oscar ceremony to drown out the verbose. And talking of worries, her deconstruction of the national ‘no worries’ catchcry is wonderfully memorable.

Smith brings some music of her own to the party, too, courtesy of the ukulele they give to every quirky female comedian as they trundle off whatever production line makes them. Her tunes are infused with the dry wit that defines much of the rest of the show, despite the overfamiliarity of the presentation.

Very occasionally the writing loses a touch of its usual zing, although Smith is such a likeable, perky presence, her personality keeps us engaged. The Jigsaw of her future success is starting to fall into place.

Reviewed at the Melbourne Comedy Festival, April 2011

Review date: 1 Jan 2012
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett