It’s the 20th anniversary of the all-women MICF gala show, Upfront. Beat wonders about the differences between now and 20 years ago in the world of female comedy. We ask Sarah Pascoe and Anne Edmonds, two of the performers in this year’s Upfront, about changes they’ve noticed. “Obviously, 20 years ago it would have been a shorter show,” says Pascoe. “Also, 20 years ago all of the women would have known each other, even if you came from opposite sides of the country. Now, and this is the great thing, there are too many of us!
“There are women comics I’ve never heard of who’ve got established careers. There’s an old feminist saying, ‘If you can’t see it, you can’t be it,’ and now comedy is a visible career option for women, there are women comics on TV; the issue of ‘women comics’ has become negligible. We’re mainstream now; we’re part of the oppression. We’ll start hearing from minorities like trans-people next saying they can’t get in.”
Does Pascoe think being female informs her comedy? “All comedy is authored. You can’t separate yourself from your comedy. You say, ‘This happened to me’ and we all have a personal world view. You can’t separate yourself; it’s the same thing with class and race. But boys don’t get asked that question. Women are seen as a sub-culture, men are not. What did happen when I first started at the age of 27 was that I was always being reminded I was a woman. I’d do gigs and people would say things to me like, ‘It’s so good to have a woman on the bill; it dilutes the testosterone in the room.’ I didn’t think of myself as a woman comedian, I thought of myself as a comedian, but I was always being reminded that it was abnormal that I was doing this job.”
Comedy used to be referred to as a ‘boys club’. Edmonds reckons the label is no longer accurate. “There’s a generation of comics who I’m coming up with, guys my age [she’s 36], who I’m on an equal footing with. We have mutual respect for each other’s work; I don’t feel any sexism from them. There still might be some sexism in old school comedy clubs, not misogyny exactly, but the bookers might have a bit of an attitude. There’s still a way for audiences to come in Australia when it comes to the reception of women in comedy.”
Pascoe says she’s reluctant to be thought of as a ‘woman comedian’. “I don’t want to be seen as representing ‘women’s comedy.’ If I have a bad night, and we all do, even really famous people – comedy is a great leveler – then it’s because I’ve personally had a bad night, it’s nothing to do with being a woman. Some comedy clubs can be sexist environments with drunken people heckling, but men yell out things to other men like, ‘Get your cock out,’ or, ‘You’re gay.’ You should hear groups of women at hen’s nights! But a male comedian wouldn’t experience that as sexism. Anyway, most women comics are brilliant at dealing with hecklers ‘cos we’ve had so much experience of it in real life.”
Edmonds is sick of the topic. “I’m very reluctant to talk about women in comedy. Already in this festival, there’s been about eight articles on the subject. The more we keep talking about it; the more it continues this idea that women are separate. I feel like we’re on an equal footing. My direct experience is pretty good. I’m more concerned about the new wave of Internet comedy, where you get people like Frenchy and Josh Wade who are blatantly misogynistic and have about a million YouTube followers. I’m playing rooms of 60 and you’ve got these 18-year-olds with that sort of following – it’s heartbreaking. You see stuff like that and wonder why audiences want to see it.” But aren’t their audiences just nerds like themselves watching from home? “They put on live shows and sell out – I find that disturbing. They don’t know how hard we are working.”
Would Edmonds have a go at men in her routines? “Women going on about being single is now considered a bit naff. But really, you’re talking about relationships, and they’re a big part of life. You’re really talking about love. It’s a happy topic. I have a go at men and have a go at women.” Is there anything Edmonds wouldn’t joke about? “I don’t have boundaries – not if I thought there was a funny way of putting things across. If can make it funny, I’ll joke about it.”
Pascoe has an interesting point to make about censorship and the current public debate about ‘rape jokes’. “There was a domestic abuse charity event in England and they wanted everyone to sign a waiver that they wouldn’t joke about rape. They struggled to get comedians to sign, because it was around the time that Adrienne Truscott was doing her wonderful show, Asking For It, about rape and misogyny. If she hadn’t been able to joke about rape, she wouldn’t have been able to have that really feminist discussion about rape culture. You joke about something to make a good point. Bridget Christie jokes about having a ‘rape fantasy’ – i.e. longer sentencing and a higher conviction rate for rapists!’ Rape jokes can be the most powerful in terms of challenging rape culture.”
BY LIZA DEZFOULI
Venue: Melbourne Town Hall – Main Hall, Cnr Swanston & Collins St, CBD
Date: April 14
Time: 7.30pm
Tickets: $31 – $44
