Melbourne International Comedy Festival review

Tarsh Jago has been heard by more attendees of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival than any other comedian, because it’s her voice acknowledging the traditional owners of the land that precedes every show.

The stand-up, who comes from the Palawa people of Tasmania, has a strong joke about the ubiquitous prerecorded message to open her first festival hour, which draws on her experiences as both a First Nations woman and a lesbian.

In that, Cherub – whose title was inspired by a social media user who told her, ‘You don’t look Aboriginal, you look like the cherub from the Pear soap’ – fits the pattern of many debuts in being a loosely bound collection of first-hand anecdotes, leaning on identity if relevant, that have been proved to work on club nights. 

Jago talks about stereotypes, her grandfather’s unexpected exploits in the Freemasons, growing up in the dead-end town of Devonport and a trip on the Spirit of Tasmania ferry sharing a dorm with her girlfriend and one other woman. Not to mention the trip to Spain for some on-the-rebound hookups when that relationship crumbled.

Some of these tales could be tighter in the telling, cutting back on the details that don’t lead to big laughs, while her tone is rather too unvarying. Yet Jago has an engaging personality that overcomes much of this.

Being Aboriginal gives some of her material added bite, with pointed, sardonic commentary on the treatment of First Nations people – even in apparently unconnected routines, such as one about cats. 

A story about a former partner wanting a tattoo in palawa kani – the Aboriginal language reassembled in recent years after being extinguished by the colonisers – has depth. Unlike the ex, who was the most unthinking kind of cultural appropriator.

Anecdotes such as this suggest Jago could probe even deeper into territory uncomfortable for white people as her confidence as a comedian grows. Earning her a nomination for best newcomer, this is a solid foundational hour on which to build that reputation. 

•  Tarsh Jago: Cherub is on at Melbourne Town Hall at 6.10pm today and tomorrow at 5.10pm on Sunday.

Review date: 17 Apr 2026
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett
Reviewed at: Melbourne International Comedy Festival