Held on World Refugee Week, Emerge In Yarra boasts live music, cooking, arts-and-crafts workshops, storytelling and theatre. One of the huge highlights is the Emerge In Yarra Comedy Gala – an extravaganza hosted by a range of talented comedians from all walks of life – with a focus to examine the intricate nature of cultural identity in Australia.
“It’s always nice to have an initiative that tries to showcase a multicultural Australia,” Jayasinha says. “To really sort of try and find those acts that most people might not have seen in the mainstream.”
Before becoming a comedian, Dilruk Jayasinha was another comedy fan – and a hugely dedicated one at that. He estimates that he still spends $600 to $700 a year on tickets to the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, purely to see as many acts as humanly possible. When he casts his mind back to his earlier days, it’s still a surreal and fascinating thought for him to now be sharing the stage with the likes of Wil Anderson and Fiona O’Loughlin.
“I think that part of the job of a comic, sometimes, is to look at those things in society that we’ve all noticed but haven’t been able to articulate,” he continues. “That’s the great thing about a good observational comic; whether it’s talking about observation in the sense of political or racial issues, or whether it’s something as simple as talking about toothpaste, or toothbrushes, or whatever it is. It’s always really great when the comic is able to find those things that we always knew but never noticed. When you have that moment of everyone watching going, ‘Oh my God, that’s so true’ – that moment is fascinating.”
He’s now an accomplished success with six years of experience that performs sell out seasons at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. He frequents TV shows like Sammy J & Randy in Ricketts Lane and Live on Bowen. He’s come a long way from those early days, but Jayasinha found in his experience that the comedy circuit is a supportive environment to start out in; an open community where constructive advice and improvement are valued. Jayasinha understood early on how the smallest elements can make the biggest difference.
“I got put pulled up by Adam Richard quite early on in my career, because I used to dress quite slobby and slovenly,” Jayasinha laughs. “Ever since he talked to me, I realised the importance of actually dressing for the performance, treating it like a job and being professional. It’s not about just ‘suiting up’; it’s more having a sense of awareness of how you look on stage and not just about the things you say. It’s always nice to have someone tell you these things than having to go through the years before realising your mistake.”
Dilruk Jayasinha will be delving into his 19 years in Sri Lanka, his migration to Australia and his take on the Australian identity at the Emerge In Yarra Comedy Gala, where he’ll join the likes of Shannan Lim and Vidya Rajan, Shiralee Hood, and his good friend Sami Shah – each with their own unique story and hilarious take on the world around them.
“It’s not easy to ‘change the world’ with comedy, because it is comedy at the end of the day,” he laughs. “But it’d be cool if, say, one person out there walks away with a different perspective than when they’d walked in… for the better, hopefully. It’s always nice if you can give a little bit more than just laughter.”
BY JACOB COLLIVER
