Melbourne International Comedy Festival review

In his solo debut away from his Late Nite PowerPoint Comedy Showcase double act partner Sweeney Preston, Ethan Cavanagh picks some low-hanging fruit, primarily complaining about how terrible property managers and budget airlines are. Nothing too controversial there.

However, his nerdy, forensic deep dive into the topics yields results as he persuades the audience to invest in these topics with some engaging storytelling – and cracking out the slides again to illustrate his routines.

He sets out his geeky credentials early doors with a series of comedy Venn diagrams, which tease common sayings as the punchlines. He admits not all will be funny, but there are some enjoyably silly gags here. 

Next up is a graph plotting drinking habits to find the sweet spot for a good night out. Despite the dorkiness of such devices, Cavanagh delivers with a slick alpha confidence, topped with a well-developed sense of timing in his anecdotes. 

As the punny title suggests, the bulk of the show revolves around his bitter experiences renting property, coloured by the disdain for his letting manager that he loves to flaunt. And the fact that the church is ultimately his landlord sparks a volley of jokes, a few obvious, a few not.

To find out how low the bar is to be a property manager, he creates a fake CV with plenty of clues that the applicant isn’t all he seems. Needless to say that this worrying phoney gets a job interview, despite all the red flags.

This sort of documentary stand-up is a good use of Cavanagh’s talents as a clear communicator and a whizz with the tech, which allows the tale to reveal itself one slide at a time.

Bond, Lost My Bond – which earned Cavanagh a best newcomer nomination – doesn’t feel like he’s stretching his abilities too much, and it’s certainly not advancing the boundaries of comedy. But it’s a solid piece of storytelling based on very relatable circumstances. 

Review date: 21 Apr 2025
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett
Reviewed at: Melbourne International Comedy Festival