The Pun 2009

It's been almost a month since I updated, but for a change there's a good reason. The Melbourne International Comedy Festival kicks off today, and I've been happily absorbed in putting together a great publication. This is the third year we will have published The Pun, and I'm really pleased that after our break last year we're back stronger than ever. As well as being the third year I've published The Pun, this is my fifth year making magazines about it (two years of MICF editions of Rabelais at La Trobe University), my seventh year of reviewing shows at MICF (including two insanely busy years reviewing around three shows per night for Beat) and, most excitingly, my ninth year attending the festival.

In my first year at MICF I saw Greg Fleet (who I had seen do a solo show at Fringe Festival the year before) Tripod, and a group show that I can't recall the performers from. That was 1999. In the years since I've loved getting more and more involved. I've produced shows, programed a venue, written thousands of words about hundreds of shows. My passion for the festival has never faded, though I'm pleased I took a break last year. That year off (I saw only two friends shows, and Daniel Kitson) gave me a chance to feel like I was missing something, and to remember how good it feels to be in the thick of that festival buzz. Which I stand on the precipice of right now.

Check out the website as myself and the team delve into the festival, reporting on all the buzz that makes the Melbourne International Comedy Festival one of the top three comedy festivals in the world, and the biggest festival in the southern hemisphere. I'm looking forward to the next 26 days with pure anticipation and joy. It's been a while since I had such a positive feeling towards MICF, mostly because the amount of work it drains out of me is so huge. This year, it will be similar, but I am happy to be right in the thick of it.

Of course, I wouldn't be myself if I didn't encourage you to SEE LOCAL SHOWS, especially the amazing FEMALE comics we are lucky enough to have in this country. My first Top 5 list is dedicated to ladies who will make you laugh, so get out there and see them. It's a tough road for women in comedy, with the usual sexism and stereotypes rearing their heads.