Laughter as a radical act
What happens when a group of comedians, anarchists and independent theatre makers decide to put on a festival that is designed to “challenge, stimulate and disturb, and also make you laugh.” The second Festival of Critical Comedy presented by Awkward Giraffe was held at the Melbourne Unitarian Peace Church last weekend and exceeded the expectations of the organisers, performers and audience members. Described by the event’s MC Sofie Prints as “an ambitious event well beyond our skill set” what unfolded was a celebration of meta-comedy; comedy about comedy. What makes you laugh? I never expected such a benign question could lead to an analysis of socio-political structures. What was radical wasn’t the content of the acts but the way the festival created a community. I discovered that what makes us laugh is as universal and diverse as what makes us human. What I found delightfully subversive was the collective resistance to being told by the morality police and the self-appointed ar...