After bursting onto the scene in 2010 as a national finalist in the Raw Comedy competition, Anne Edmonds has quickly become a favourite across the Australian comedy community, presenting shows at festivals around the country and appearing in TV programs likeIt’s A DateandBack Seat Drivers.
Her place on the scene was well and truly cemented last year when she was awarded the Melbourne International Comedy Festival’s coveted Piece of Wood award – as voted by her peers – and now she’s on the way to Sydney Comedy Festival.
“I’ve always presented my best hour of stuff,” says Edmonds of the Melbourne award, “but it’s just a lovely thing that happened to me last year. Hopefully it will help more people discover me again … It’s given me a lot of confidence, that award, knowing that the other comics think I’m doing a good job, so that helps.”
Now that she’s gained some experience onstage, Edmonds has some advice for would-be comedians looking to achieve festival success. “I think a lot of comedy is about being yourself onstage – 100 per cent. When people are genuinely expressing their ideas for the sake of comedy, rather than for the sake of getting famous or pleasing the mainstream – pushing the boundaries a bit and challenging the way people think – that’s often what makes a good show.”
Edmonds is known for the quirky characters she presents in her shows, and her ability to intertwine their tales with her own – all while plucking away on a banjo.
“I remember I got a one-star review in Adelaide once, and the guy said, ‘Not only can Anne Edmonds not do comedy, but she also can’t sing.’ That was always my fallback plan, to sing, so that was a bit of a double blow. It put me in bed for a couple of days,” she laughs.
Now with plenty more positive reviews under her belt, Edmonds is coming to Sydney with her latest show, That’s Eddotainment.
“It’s my brand new hour of stand-up,” explains Edmonds. “There’s a bit of stuff in there about relationships – a lot of it’s about trying to get people to like me. My stand-up is normally fairly personal. A lot of it comes from what’s been happening with my life and what I’ve observed in the world. Apart from that, I find a lot of inspiration from middle Australia, the average man on the street.”
In addition to her solo show, Edmonds will team up with fellow comics Damien Power and Greg Larsen for a show with the True Australian Patriots – a satirical reflection on Reclaim Australia and the United Patriots Front movements.
“I think it’s something that we wanted to shine a light on and make fun of,” explains Edmonds. “These groups are making certain parts of the community feel pretty horrible so we thought we’d have a go at them instead.
“I’ve always done a bit of character comedy. When I first started out I did an online sketch called ‘Raylene The Racist’, which is actually similar in context to True Aussie Patriots. It’s a bit sad because that was eight years ago and I don’t think we’ve moved forward very much since then.”
That’s Eddotainment is on atGiant Dwarf Friday May 6 and Saturday May 7, as part of Sydney Comedy Festival 2016; andAnne Edmondsappears as part of True Australian Patriots, also at Giant Dwarf, Saturday May 7.
