Tom Stevenson and Ru Halwala are building a regional comedy ecosystem. Photo: Supplied / Scary Strangers.
There’s an assumption that if you want to make it as a comedian in Australia, you need to be in Sydney or Melbourne. But what if you could build a sustainable comedy career without living in a capital city?
Supported by a Blue Mountains City of the Arts Trust Grant, the festival is intended as more than a new addition to the regional events calendar. For its founders, it is an experiment in what it takes to build a local comedy scene – and whether regional artists can develop viable careers without having to relocate to the big smoke.
Alannah Sue (she/her) is a journalist, writer and theatre critic with a passion for arts and culture and all that glitters. She joined the Creative Hubs Group team as Senior Arts & Screen Journalist after relocating to Melbourne in 2025. She previously served as Arts & Culture Editor at Time Out Sydney and contributes to various publications.
She is always keen to take a chance on weird performance art, theatre of all kinds, out-of-the-box exhibitions, queer venues, and cheap Prosecco. Give her half a chance, and she will get on a soapbox when it comes to topics like the magic of musical theatre, the importance of rigorous arts criticism, and the global cultural implications of the RuPaul’s Drag Race franchise. Got a pitch for Alannah? Send an email to: [email protected]
