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Tuesday 19 April 2016

Old Town Comedy Club Review April 7th 2016



(clockwise from left) Dana, Tiernen, Bryan and Matthew crushed another one.


Evan Burgess checked out the slick work of Dana Alexander, Matthew Baylis, Tiernan Douieb and Bryan Lacey.


MC Bryan Lacey had an exuberant and positive charm that instantly ingratiated him with the audience. Building rapport was the first step, and the next was developing and curating his hold on the audience. Throughout the night we got to know more about Bryan, and he perhaps too much about us! Warming us up from the cold start, Bryan brought on Matthew Baylis.


Starting with a tentative probe of the audience’s resolve, Matthew soon found how far he could push it.  Covering some uncomfortable ground, there were no uncomfortable silences in Matthew’s monologues. All the gaps were filled with claps, gasps or laughter. Not to give too much away, but my opinion on online dating was somewhat coloured by Matthew’s experiences.


After a quick break, we got to know a bit more about Bryan. After explaining he was in training for an MMA fight, he began gently flirting with a chap in the audience. No pressure there! The lucky guy, a rower with the look of Thor about him, wasn’t too excited. But have no fear, it all worked out for the greater good: comedy. After the spark was lost, we moved on to discovering the dynamics between some couples in the audience, it was driven home to us how some guys don’t pay attention to time! One gent was 6 months out in his estimate of how long his relationship lasted... his night was not over yet.


Tiernen Douieb hadn’t been too keen on the preceeding talk of MMA, rowing and general keep fit. “I’d rather have cheese” he explained with agreement from the audience. Tiernen’s personality was perfect for the crowd. Drawing upon his life experiences, the audience felt genuine warmth towards the comic. Receiving a massive round of applause, we were to come back to a large surprise after the break.


Back on stage with his guitar, Bryan had fallen in love with the gent who had forgotten six months of his relationship. Seeing this as a sign it couldn’t mean that much to him, Bryan had written a perfectly rhyming song tailor made for the moment. Stunned, the audience knew they wouldn’t see this magic again anytime soon.


Headline act Dana Alexander had a lot to come after. She took it in her stride as she dominated the stage with her opinionated set. After what had already been said in the night, it was too late to be controversial now. But she struck the right tone and took the audience for a ride wherever her words took them. Look out for these names! Old Town Comedy Club has a habit of booking acts before they hit national success, such as Nish Kumar and Romesh Ranganathan.


Old Town Comedy Club is back on the 5th May with Otiz Cannelloni, James Dowdeswell, Ed Gamble and more! To find out about tickets, check out the Facebook event here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1777449935822466/
Don't miss out next time! Book your ticket now.

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