Review – Storytellers’ Club on the Popeye

Welcome aboard, mateys, to the Storyteller’s Club on Popeye! You’ll want to bring a bottle of wine, a good friend, and probably abandon any personal space issues you might have before leaving dry land. The Popeye is sweetly decorated with tiny sparkling fairy lights, but you’re forced to get really intimate with those seated around you. The venue is still delightful, though, because there really is something magical about being on The Popeye at night, and the comedians I saw were all fantastic.

Our host Sarah Bennetto is gorgeous and very likeable. She draws in the audience with her easy-going nature, her cute anecdotes and interesting celebrity stories, and ties the evening together seamlessly.

Our first comic, James Dowdeswell, recounts a hilarious tale about the loveable larrikins who frequent his father’s pub. Next on the line-up was Ivan Aristeguieta, a stylish funnyman with a cheeky smile and killer material. He delved into the surprising similarities between his life in Venezuela and here in Australia with a lot of good-natured banter. I really valued the way he was able to play on the stereotypes of both nations without coming off as insulting or ignorant.

We then saw local comedian Dave Bloustien, who attracted some good laughs, especially on the topics of fatherhood the importance of good grammar. He was a bit more casual in his approach but no less enjoyable.

In the final performance we experience the classic comedy of Damian Callinan – a veteran Aussie comic who still knows how to bring in the laughs after years on the scene. He’s so unpredictable and oddball, and yet so accessible; energetic and compelling, and able to include the audience without putting them on the spot.

Storyteller’s Club on Popeye is a small scale comedy gala with a twist. It’s smooth sailing and clear waters with this ratbag crew of comedians, and there is something enchanting and certainly incomparable about this show – definitely there is nothing like it at this year’s Fringe.