Review – Don’t Kiss the Weird Girl

Have you ever, in the grips of self loathing and despair, realised that only a missing pack of corn chips stands between you and home-made nachos? Have you been tempted to heat up the salsa and cheese in a bowl and just eat it anyway? Lord knows I have! And so has Sonia Di Iorio. In fact, her stand-up comedy show Don’t Kiss The Weird Girl can almost be called the chronicle of the events leading to that very moment.

Sonia is a storyteller in the same vein as Mike Birbiglia or Simon Keck, her show largely consisting of a long-form anecdote that builds comedic tension over time. The material isn’t amazing, piece by piece, but in its whole form it is a lot of fun and genuinely engaging.

This is Sonia’s debut show, so of course there are some places where unnecessary detail could be trimmed, or the pace could be tightened up a little, but the core material is good and, more importantly, funny. As the show is performed it’ll get better and, since I was there opening night, she’s probably way ahead of me on that score.

Don’t Kiss The Weird Girl is a funny show about young love, bad choices, and a good idea for a cookbook, and I’d pick Sonia as a local comedian worth keeping your eye on.