“Hilarious. Awesome. Hilarious.” – Miss 9
“The best part was all of it.” -Miss 5
“It’s great how they make it funny for the grown-ups, too.” -Mr. Artsplorer
Start with knowing up to three notes on the bass guitar. Add in half a banana, a dad-powered fog machine, and a kid who can burp on command. Sprinkle liberally with bum-crack jokes. You’re well on your way to the treat that is The Listies’ newest show, Make Some Noise.
The Listies are the Melbourne-based comedy duo of Richard Higgins and Matthew Kelly (aka – Rich and Matt). They are something of a modern-day Vaudeville comedy duo, with Rich as the amiable straight-man and Matt as his rambunctious friend and foil. Their act is for kids (5ish-12ish is the perfect age), but they are nice enough to bring the entire family along for the ride. It really is a rare talent – and one that, behind all the silly, they clearly work very hard at – to consistently craft comedy that has both kids and adults in genuine peals of laughter.
Make Some Noise is a musical collage which moves seamlessly through sketches and original songs. They open with the ultra-catchy “110% Ready,” wearing LED-light clad jumpsuits (“$25 at Bunnings”). There are some super slaptick bits with fragile instruments that you know are going to get broken, but that doesn’t stop it from being pitch-perfect. There’s air guitar – naturally. We were doubled over for the entirely of “Richard’s Musical Corner,” where Rich is thwarted in his effort to give us some proper musical education by Matt’s (brilliantly) ill-prepared slideshow.
The Listies especially excel at audience participation … stay with me, it’s actually fun. They are in their element when interacting with kids and the occasional “very old person” (any adult). The “audience orchestra” is a charming part of the show, where they get you completely on the side of the kids and “old person” who are game enough to jump up on stage. There’s also plenty of full-audience dancing and singing that you actually want to take part in because it’s just pure joy.
All this takes place in a fast-moving one hour package, I haven’t even gotten to the bit where Matt is a giant baby…
After the show, the duo are happy to sign books and CDs, which you can purchase in the lobby.
When we go to the theatre, we love nothing more than to watch our kids be delighted. It’s not always that case that we “very old people” are equally as enthralled. The Listies Make Some Noise was music to all of our ears.
We attended Make Some Noise as guests of Monkey Baa Theatre. Opinions are entirely ours.
The Listies’ Make Some Noise is on at Monkey Baa Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays through May 29. Full dates, times and tickets at Monkey Baa’s website.
Read more about The Listies and purchase their books and CDs on their website.
If you are a “very old person” who is interested in hearing about The Listies’ process, I highly recommend this fantastic interview with Benny Time Music.