The title says it all – from the first moment, the eight performers, plus two band members, and crew who come onstage to set props and contribute to the comedy; the cast never stop running, strumming, drumming, juggling, tumbling, sliding, leaping, soaring, hurtling and landing – and adjusting their skirts. This is an ongoing gag, as the whole cast is wearing some variation on tunics or dresses, of assorted lengths – some of which need pulling down demurely, to mid-thigh, or lower, at the end of an especially challenging manoeuvre.
There are pratfalls, amazing feats of balance, surprises, sight gags and, as always with Circus Oz, a dollop of political comment thrown in. The main focus of this is Debra Batton, 65-year-old Circus Oz elder, whose elastic age (Is she 67? Is she 75?). Part of the fun is to be had at a certain government department’s expense, with comments about the plight of artists managing to live while practising their chosen profession, and the lack of such niceties as superannuation, woven in. In a consistently funny show, with the audience in gales of glee, Batton gets the biggest laughs of the night.
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The one small quibble is the sound quality during the narration of Batton’s circumstances – a combination of clear mic technique and sound balancing will fix that – for even more laughs per minute – in a great show.
Circus Oz: Non Stop will be performed at Main Hall, Melbourne Town Hall until 20 April 2024 as part of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival (MICF 2025).
