Melbourne International Comedy Festival review

For a stand-up supposedly on strike over how the Australian comedy industry treats outsiders – among many other grievances – Laura Davis has been remarkably productive.

Their stage/picket line is piled high with multicoloured placards as they vow not to do anything to make the audience laugh, only to shift merch after the show. But if you've seen a Laura Davis show before, you know things won’t be as straightforward as that.

They make much of their contrarian, unpredictable nature, projecting an air of ‘what will I say?’ danger, emphasised by a peculiarly restless physicality. A tumultuous personal life feeds into that feeling – Davis is getting divorced and has had to come back to Australia from Scotland because of it, leaving them physically as well as spiritually and professionally rootless. They exude a certain ‘divorced dad’ midlife crisis energy, throwing themselves rather too enthusiastically into a diversion project.

Whether this is a genuine industrial action or just a gag remains typically murky, though the laughs are real, whatever protest is being made. In fact, this show – which won the Golden Gibbo award for independent artistic endeavour – is one of their more accessible yet.

With a placard targeted for every profession they can think of, it’s as if Davis is showing they are not as niche as their reputation, almost literally offering something for everyone. (Though why no ‘comedy reviewers who give a ****’ slogan?)

Swag comes with messaging about how local oddballs can take on global psychopaths – which obviously comes from the heart – and a sarcastic take on why we should embrace artificial intelligence as a form of ethically-sourced art. If you have a very precise definition of ‘ethical’, that is.

While Davis is surely right about mainstream entertainment not being ready to embrace them, they offer an obvious appeal for  festival crowds seeking something alternative, political and (moderately) challenging with an enthusiastic DIY ethos. It’s just a little too complicated to fit on a placard.

Review date: 19 Apr 2026
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett