The sold out Josh Earl Vs. The Australian Woman’s Weekly Birthday Cake Cook Book, Josh Earl is moving onto grander, but just as heart-warming themes.
After last year’s warm and fuzzy reminiscences of childhood celebrations, the sold out Josh Earl Vs. The Australian Woman’s Weekly Birthday Cake Cook Book, Josh Earl is moving onto grander, but just as heart-warming themes.
“It’s based on the radio show love songs and dedications,” Josh says. “But it’s really more just about love songs. There is a storyline to it. It is actually the most theatrical show I have done; it follows the story of a young couple getting together and is interspersed with stories from my own from back when I was dating, and friends who are still dating. It’s about working towards that point where you are pretty content and happy and you think ‘Yeah, I can let myself go now.’”
In the hands of Earl you can trust that it will be lovely, charming, gentle, very funny and maybe a little bit twee. “[In] past years people have said my stuff is a bit twee,” he counters, “so this year I am taking more risks, which is good. A lot of comics like to tell you how to live your life; I don’t wanna go and listen to someone tell me how I should be living. And a lot of times comedians forget about jokes, and I like jokes in my comedy. People always say that I am like Flight Of The Conchords, because of the songs, and I’m just not.
“I hope that I’m not churning out the same show every year. Some bands do that with albums and you think, ‘Ugh!’ But you also don’t want to change too much; it’s a fine line.”
It is rather fitting that Josh does so well at The Melbourne Comedy Festival because it was the festival that inspired him to become a comedian. “Growing up in Tassie there wasn’t a lot of comedy around and then I remember the Comedy Festival road show came to town,” Josh explains. “ I think it was the first year they had done it and I went along to that and just thought, ‘That’s what I want to do.’ I had always been interested in comedy – it was on TV I’d watch it, but in Tassie we had two stations. If it was on, you were lucky. And so about four years after the road show I did my first gig as a stand-up. It has kind of snowballed and is now my full time job.”
The first time I caught Josh’s act he was still working his day job as a primary school librarian but it would seem that he has backed himself and gone professional. “There’s that thing that people say: ‘All small businesses have a high risk of failing in the first six months’” he laughs. “It’s been a year and a half now, so that’s good, I have made it through that – it bodes well.
“Hopefully some of the kids I used to teach still come along!” he adds. “I talk about sex a bit in this show so they will get a bit of an education.”
Josh Earl performs Josh Earl’s Love Songs And Dedications at the New Ballroom at Trades Hall from March 31 – April 24. It’s at 7pm Tuesday – Saturday and 6pm on Sundays. Tickets are $20 – $26.50 and available through Ticketmaster online, 1300 660 013 or at the door.
