The concept of Open Bike is simple yet brilliant – it’s open mic on a bike.
The scene of the crime: Cycle Bar in Fitzroy. Intimate, smelling like exercise and lit like Guerns on a Thursday night, it was the perfect place for this innovative show.
Former spin instructor turned comedian, Maryellen, was the host and guide for the afternoon alongside her Sad and Sexy Podcast co-host Bianka Ismailovski. Together, they led the audience through a spin cycle routine while introducing their guests.
A rotating tap of comedians – all from underrepresented communities in the comedy scene – switch out on the stage to cycle and perform a comedy routine, while you cycle along with them on the spin studio’s bikes.
Keep up with Melbourne’s latest comedy news, reviews and interviews here.
It was extremely fun to engage in a comedy act that’s been taken off the traditional stage. Usually, when you watch standup, you’re sitting down while the comedian stands, but at Open Bike you’re implicitly connected to a comedian who is doing exactly the same thing as you – cycling.
https://www.instagram.com/p/ChW5RTRN0h6/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
As Maryellen bought to light in her set, I also have late-diagnosed adult ADHD and I found the format of the show perfect for my easily distractible brain. Cycling while watching a show is the comedy equivalent of having Subway Surfers on while you work – and you get a workout out of it too.
Honestly, the best part of the whole experience was how good I felt afterwards. The amount of serotonin that was released into my brain after an hour of cycling and laughing was crazy, it’s definitely the best that I’ve felt after attending a comedy show this year.
To top it all off, everyone in the audience got a free spin class to be redeemed at a later date. Truly bang for your buck.
Open Bike was an exciting and innovative show that took comedy off the stage and into the spin cycle studio. The hosts were charismatic, the guests were incredible and the concept was unique and engaging. Definitely try to rope your friends into heading down to see this show on a Sunday afternoon, your dopamine transmitters will thank you.
Grab tickets here.
