Melbourne International Comedy Festival review

‘Is it meant to be this shit? That’s the question,’ says Colin Lane after a fluffed line in this alleged new take on the great American novel.

Of course it is, for he and Frank Woodley, ‘Moby dickheads’ in their own words, are back doing what they always have – a 12-year break in their partnership notwithstanding – presenting a chaotic clutter of slapstick, wordplay, prop comedy and bickering. So much bickering…

Their dynamic, and possibly some of the gags, comes straight out of vaudeville, with straightman Lane parading his serious artistic intentions to stage an earnest retelling of the Herman Melville classic, while being sabotaged by the mischievous, dumb clowning of Woodley, driving a harpoon through the show.

There’s a parallel to be drawn between Lane’s consuming desire to be taken seriously and Captain Ahab’s obsessive hunt for the whale, standing in contrast to Ishmael and Woodley’s propensity for digression. But any such analogies are worn so lightly as to be as elusive as the titular creature, as the duo use the classic story as the loosest of reasons to bob from one silly sketch to the next.

Standouts are Woodley’s attempts to ‘improve’ the classic, especially its famous ‘call me Ishmael’ opening line, and his hilarious inability to grasp simple analogy. Meanwhile, a game involving a giant squid showcases the more physical aspect of their work, while Lane gets a couple of talents to showcase his musical talents.

There’s a running gag in which each of the duo in turn screams for the other to be ‘cancelled’ – as well as obligatory references to the Will Smith bust-up – and eventually the childlike, limerick-loving Woodley is banished from the stage. Though, of course, not for long.

It’s performed so loosely it’s never clear which asides, corpsing and backchat are planned and which are spontaneous as the show forever teeters on the precipice of becoming a shipwreck. In less capable hands, that could be self-indulgent, but here it’s all part of the simple joy of their comedy, performed with a guileless innocence (though quite a bit of swearing).

With every beat of the story existing only to be undermined, there’s a risk that there’s nothing of substance for the audience to invest in, a pitfall that the pair don’t entirely avoid. But the set pieces are almost all funny enough for that not to matter much, as the duo continue to test their love-hate relationship to breaking point.

It’s the obvious pub, but Lano and Woodley really do guarantee a whale of a time.

• Lano & Woodley: Moby Dick is at the Comedy Theatre, Melbourne, at 6pm on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, 6.30pm on Fridays and Saturdays and 5pm on Sundays until April 24.

Review date: 6 Apr 2022
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett
Reviewed at: Melbourne International Comedy Festival