If you're growing tired of the same old stand-up from the same old stand-up comedians, Jared Jekyll is here to shake the table.
As a 34-year-old neurodivergent, non-binary, polyamorous, queer Jew with bipolar and Tourette's, Jared's far from the standard and in their show 'Manic Pixie Dreamboat', they'll do everything they can to deconstruct their life the only way they know how – sublimating their pain into art to entertain the masses.
Jared's material has been heard in New York and Hollywood, and you may have caught them on ABC Comedy and The Comedy Channel, too.
Themes of mental illness, addiction and identity struggles are laced through Jared's comedy, but not before being wrapped up neatly with a glittery bow made of ROFLs, LOLs and LMAOs.
Here, ahead of their Sydney Fringe Comedy show 'Manic Pixie Dreamboat', Jared lists five eats and drinks that keep them mentally stable. Grub's up!
One
Smoked salmon bagels. They’re the best, and if you disagree, I’ll eat my f...ing hat, but only if it’s low-carb and doesn’t ruin my appetite. Picture it! A puffy – yet firm – toasted, boiled bread donut; topped with poppy and sesame seeds; smothered – top and bottom – with a hefty layer of crème cheese. Fold on a few silk sheets of thick, juicy Nova Scotian Lox; a smattering of the saltiest capers imaginable, and a dash of lemon juice to make it all ping. If you’re feeling unorthodox, add some purple onion and rocket, but NEVER avocado. Eat it and call it a day. You can die happy now. Lox, Stock and Barrel at Bondi Beach knock it out of the park!Two
Starbucks frappuccino. If you’re a sweet tooth who loves insomnia, get your lips around this outrageously tasty caffeinated beverage. My go-to is the White Chocolate Mocha Frapp. The first time I had it, I almost cried tears of joy because my then-girlfriend who introduced me to the drink was being absolutely awful to me, but I forgive her as she was kind enough to impart me with the wisdom of this holy drink. It’s viscously icy as heck, and is laced with the most luscious coffee syrup in all the land. If you’ve got lots of work to get through, add an extra shot of arabica, it will have you bouncing off the walls till you’ve done thousands of dollars worth of damage to your apartment, but among the wreckage will be a think piece as integral as this.Three
Connoisseur mint and cookies ice cream. If you told me right now I could never again press my warm tongue to this below-freezing, leafy green, whipped-milk slab, I honesty don’t know what I would do. Or how far I would go. You know cookies and cream? Well, it’s that, but instead of cream-flavoured(?), it’s the goddamn richest peppermint ice cream on the face of this dirt ball. Not to mention, rippled throughout this blizzard-like mouth punch, is the 10 per cent cookie content. A tenth of the tub is crunchy biscuit! I personally dislike choc chips in my ice cream because they go rock hard and when chocolate pieces reach that low temperature they become too sweet and chalky, but cookies that taste like brownies? Sign me the frig up! I love ice cream more than my family and this is the best one in the solar system, and I would bet my dog's life on it.Four
Long Island iced tea. Now, I’m not one to encourage drinking unless it’s the standard eight glasses of water a month, but this nectar of the neck-tat gods – when done right – will blow your face off and fill you with glee. A tall glass full of ice, followed by a a nip of vodka, tequila, rum, triple sec, and gin, then filled to the literal brim with cola. . . You cannot get more intensely sour, yet sweet. This drink can ruin a night or a marriage when ordered at your local, but righteously requested at a nice bar with top shelf spirits, not only is it unmatched and will fill the staff with judgement, but that $50 price tag will be quickly forgotten as you’re guided into a transcendental state of unabashed ecstasy. It’s the first drink I legally ordered after I turned 18, and the first drink I think of when I want to turn up, unless I am driving, then it’s four litres of aqua.Five
Pasta/pizza. As a proud 6 per cent Italian, I go positively “oof madone” for a good piece of pie or pasta. A lamb ragù rigatoni, a traditional spaghetti bolognese, with beef, soffritto, pancetta, white wine (not red), and cream/milk whipped through the sauce. And of course, al dente. “To the tooth” always and forever. As far as a yummy slice, give me that huge Italian American pie. A doughy base and lightly crunchy crust, gently charred. Firm enough to hold toppings, yet thin and wet enough to fold like a paper plane, then prepare for take off and touch down in your gullet. One: prosciutto, mushroom and mozzarella. Two: broccoli, tandoori chicken and mint sauce. Three: classic vegetarian: mushroom, onion, black olives, spinach and tomato. Five toppings is pushing it into excess in my opinion, so keep it light in spread but high in contrasting flavours. Caffe Roma in Kings Cross is one of my go tos, and they’re often often till about 2am, perfect for that late night binge-filled existential crisis. If you can find a Johnny Gio’s, I highly recommend any of their dishes, and you can’t go wrong with Mad Pizza é Bar. NB: If the joint doesn’t serve your pizza on that high tea-looking podium, leave immediately, it’s not worth your time or money. You are what you eat, so make sure it’s yummy, sometimes healthy, but always fun.Jared Jekyll's 'Manic Pixie Dreamboat' plays Factory Theatrew as part of Sydney Fringe Comedy 22, 24 and 25 September.
