Comedy / felicity ward
Review: Stephen K. Amos/Felicity Ward
Stephen K. Amos is one of those comedians who seems to relax the audience as soon as he goes onstage. And indeed, he shows himself to be an extremely well-rounded comic in this very funny, very clever show.
Much of the first half reflects on modern life versus the old days – and on the pain of growing up, amusingly delivered to an 18-year-old in the front row.
On the one hand, Amos is witty, quashing hecklers and ad-libbing with ease. He also creates wonderful characters with his eyes and voice – like his mother with her great book of ailments, or his scary father.
But he’s also a wise orator, and the second half of his show is an impassioned diatribe about his vision for a “post-racial multicultural world”. You can say anything as long as the intent is clear, he argues, making excellent use of racial stereotypes about black men for his funny and poignant points.
Support Felicity Ward is an Aussie with a big smile and a firecracker personality. After a few misses with some slightly safe material, she gets into her stride after a well-received gag about comedians needing a vocal audience: “a snort to a comedian is like a burp to a chef” she told us.
As a result, her act gets funnier as she sings cricket songs aimed at the Poms, gets angry about hairless cats, and paints wonderful imaginary pictures of her fat two-year-old niece.
The two acts are linked by compere Joel Dommett. His is the art of surprise: we lurch from office management to ear kissing in one quick switch. Kicking off the second half, he really finds his feet with some great callbacks that warm the audience up well for Amos.
The latter points out the diversity of the evening: a young white guy, a thirtysomething white Australian female, and ‘an old black man’: all a treat for the warm Bristol crowd.
Stephen K. Amos, Felicity Ward and Joel Dommett played the Apple Top at Bristol Comedy Garden on Friday, July 10.
Bristol Comedy Garden For more info and to book tickets, visit www.bristolcomedygarden.co.uk
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