Tom Stade – Original Review | Review by Steve Bennett

Tom Stade – Original Review

Note: This review is from 2002

Review by Steve Bennett

An assuredly funny Canadian comic who puts nothing out of his comedy range.

No matter whether the topic's obscure or familiar, the gag stupid or intelligent, bland or offensive - it's all encompassed in his wide-ranging act.

He's happy to switch from a hack subject such as smoking dope to a joke that literally require a knowledge of relativity to understand - and the audience is happy to go with him.

But even when you think you know where a story is heading, he has an individually quirky way of looking at it - and a sometimes inspired turn of phrase - that leads to unexpected punchlines.

The act, though, is less about pay-offs than the journey through the scenes he depicts. For it to work, you do have to buy into this world, though his good-natured charm makes that easy, and accept that the ride is sometimes better than the destination.

He's confident, calm and collected on stage - slick, even, though it's not to his detriment as his standpoint is usually offbeat even if his delivery isn't.

Such a chipper, matey manner allows him to get away with occasional forays into the darker recesses of his soul and gags that transgress the margins of misogyny, without really causing the offence they could.

Review date: 1 Sep 2002
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett

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