Melbourne International Comedy Festival review

Let’s face it, ‘sexy’ and ‘sketch comedy’ rarely go together, but Hot Department are the exception.

Granted, Honor Wolff and Patrick Durnan Silva are the sort of sexy that might be wild in bed but infuriatingly unhinged out of it, but the analogy stands for this high-octane, demented and gloriously sloppy hour of off-the-wall slapstick.

Theatre kids giddy to be off the leash, they boast formidable performance skills with a willingness to subject themselves to any preposterous indignity or pratfall in pursuit of a laugh. Their supercharged energy is a bit Aunty Donna-like – but even less structured. The safety rails are definitely off.

Silliness abounds, from an old-timey showbiz razzle-dazzle intro that they soon abandon through a terrible Keira Knightley impression, mates fiercely roasting each other, the reenactment of a kinky mouse fetish, an impersonation of Silva’s Brazilian dad and an alluring numerical striptease, to name but a few. 

The pace is furious, and even the less successful skits bundle through on sheer energy, quickly and vigorously dispatched. But there’s invention, however off-kilter, behind each mad scene, and that you have no idea what’s coming next is a huge part of the appeal of these loose units, who allow not a scintilla of sincerity to infringe on the insanity.

Their comedy’s often crude – and there are c-bombs aplenty – but done with cheek and knowingness, never aggression, and 100 per cent commitment. The joy is of these two hugely physical performers, in little more than underwear, joyously excited to allow themselves to be as naughty as they like, following any bonkers thought through to its conclusion.

Strap in for a wild roller-coaster ride from two charismatic performers with an intense on-stage chemistry.

Review date: 9 Apr 2024
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett
Reviewed at: Melbourne International Comedy Festival