In the lead up to the festival, Beat will be releasing a weekly podcast on Wednesdays, followed by daily podcats once the festival kicks off. Today’s MICF Daily speaks with Sydney comedy nerd Dom Romeo about his his first trip to the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, performing versus producing, and how a question with an expected answer generated a festival show. Romeo appears in Stand-Up Sit-Down: Comics in Conversation, Thursday through Sunday at the Victoria Hotel. For tickets and times, visit the Comedy Festival website.
This week in MICF Daily News:
– Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2013 is officially here, with the Famous Spiegeltent hosting the festival’s media launch. In it’s 27th year, this year’s festival will host 477 unique shows across 119 venues in Melbourne and the inner-city. This year’s festival will take place over 26 days in March and April, with 1,000 participants appearing in 5,860 performances.
– This year’s festival will also feature a couple of choice reunions for classic comedy fans. The Doug Anthony All Stars – made up of Paul McDermott, Richard Fidler, and Tim Ferguson are reuniting in order to launch their new DAAS KAPITAL DVD. Tickets got snapped up so quickly for the one-off event, that promoters were prompted to move it from the Capitol Theatre to the Melbourne Town Hall to allow for a larger audience. Also back together for one night only is Australia: You’re Standing In It. The ABC show ran from 1983 to 1984 and featured then-stars from the emerging Melbourne scene such as Rod Quantock and Mary Kenneally. Tickets for both shows are on sale now from Ticketmaster.
– While this year’s festival features many big international names ranging from Arj Barker to Ruby Wax, many people were disappointed to find Daniel Kitson missing from the festival guide. Fear not – Kitson will be returning to Melbourne for a series of intimate shows. The UK favourite announced via his newsletter that he will be performing 18 low-key shows at pop-up venue The Tuxedo Cat. Further details on dates and how to purchase tickets will be on future episodes of MICF Daily.
– 2012 Festival Best Newcomer Matt Okine has been announced as the host of the RAW Comedy Grand Final. The Sydney based comic made the RAW Grand Final himself in 2004, with the final being his fourth all-time gig. Okine will be joined by RAW Comedy India’s first winner Neeti Palta, who will perform a showcase spot at the final. The event will be taped by ABC, to air later in 2013.
– The Comedy Zone have revealed their line-up for the 2013 festival. The Zone features five upcoming acts from around Australia, hand-picked by the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. Future MICF Daily guest Hayman Kent will be joined by Ivan Aristeguieta, Neel Kolhatkar, Tien Tran, and Amos Gill. The show kicks off 8:15pm Tuesday through Saturday, and 7:15pm Sunday at Trades Hall, tickets on sale now at Ticketmaster.
– Hardcore comedy fans take note – the race to find Melbourne’s biggest comedy fan is now open. Since 2005 The Funny Tonne has given three lucky punters a golden ticket to see as many shows as they can physically and mentally stand. 2011 competitor Kath Dolheguy holds the record at 145 shows, and now the festival is looking for it’s 2013 entrants. Entry forms can be found on the Comedy Festival’s website, with entries open until Tuesday March 12.
