Melbourne International Comedy Festival review

Mocking pretentious thespians is a popular sport, especially among those who’ve worked and studied alongside them. Nevertheless, Gaulier-trained Hannah Camilleri offers  a delightful and highly skilled contribution to the genre.

We first meet an Elizabethan woman agonisingly wailing the departure of her beloved – no indication we’re about to see a comedy here – before Camilleri breaks that character to reveal the intense and insecure actress behind her, Victoria. She asks if we have any notes on her potent performance, not that she would accept any.

Victoria is not the only self-absorbed actor in the show. The oddly-named Fondant is a pompous, booming old ham, but the moment Victoria sets eyes on him and hears his melodramatic overemphasis, she’s in love. Fondant’s in love, too. With himself.

Although these characters have broadly similar personalities, Camilleri’s talented enough to delineate their individual peculiarities. She also reintroduces an old favourite from previous shows, Frank, formerly a mechanic and now a sage and laconic stagehand at the theatre where they work who also acts as an all-seeing chorus filling out the narrative.

Audience members are selected to be a scene partner, an understudy and a director, with varying degrees of success. Although they are given relatively little to do compared to some of Camilleri’s previous work, their involvement helps add an air of spontaneity. Camilleri has great control of subtle character traits, making all her creations seem authentic, but she also allows  a looseness into her performance to enhance that informality and comically break the spell she’s able to cast.

The comedy gets slightly repetitive as her creations make repeat appearances. But the recurrence is never unwelcome as Camilleri builds to a climax   which takes a leaf out of Natalie Palamides’s Weer, but a little more awkwardly. This is what happens when storytelling ambition collides with low-budget reality, the dependable Camilleri wryly admits as she wraps up another adroit display of character comedy.

• Hannah Camilleri: Dinner Hannah Show is on at the Malthouse Theatre at 7.30pm (6.30pm Sundays; no show Mondays) until April 19).

Review date: 9 Apr 2026
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett
Reviewed at: Melbourne International Comedy Festival