Elouise Eftos picked the path of pure chaos when she declared herself ‘Australia’s First Attractive Comedian’.
She was, after all, breaking the oldest rule in comedy: If you want the audience to love you, make fun of yourself first. This rule runs so deep there are even TED Talks about it. But Elouise was having none of it.
After granting herself (and her new Adelaide Fringe show) this audacious title, the Perth comedian sat back and laughed as the outrage rolled in. It’s the perfect setup for her signature brand of comedy, which poses one deliciously loaded question: what if women stopped apologising and started owning their power?
Described by audience members as “a huge win for hot people” and “a show for anyone who genuinely and correctly believes they're the hottest, funniest and smartest person in any room at any time,” Elouise’s comedy will either piss you off or have you pissing yourself laughing – there really is no in between.
This divisiveness arises from the fact that she’s not afraid to say the quiet part out loud. "I want to be smart, I want to be beautiful, I want to be funny, I want to be multifaceted. And I want to be so annoyingly good at all these things that it pisses people off," Elouise declares boldly.
But behind the scenes, her inner critic often steals the mic. “I’m quite an anxious person myself. I was bullied in high school. I was never cool. Never popular. So it’s fun to play the role of this cool, popular person who’s unapologetically like, ‘I’m better than you’. I’m still hoping I can one day be this persona in real life. Obviously, I’m being silly on stage and I make her a bit more arrogant than I am off-stage. . . Way more arrogant actually,” she corrects herself with a laugh.
Though the arrogance definitely gets amped up on stage, her unapologetic self-love is a straight-up vibe. "There's something so powerful about being a woman and saying, 'oh no, I'm good at this, I'm powerful at this'," she observes.
Her approach says “thanks, no thanks” to comedy's traditional reliance on self-deprecation. Instead, she holds up an elegant middle finger to the unspoken rules that say women should be humble and grateful to even have the opportunity to do something like comedy. “I hate that,” Elouise says. “I don’t want it to be like that anymore. I think everyone should feel like they have a right to do whatever they want to be doing, regardless of gender or sexuality or race… And I feel like if I’m confident in how I look, it’s an invitation for other people to feel confident in how they look too.”
Ask anyone who's gone from messy to majestic in one of Elouise’s beginner heels classes, and they'll confirm she practises what she preaches about lifting others up. Elouise runs these inclusive events with friend and fellow dancer Holly Sheils, and she lights up when she talks about them. “I love that I can share that with people. There’s no stress or pressure, just a safe environment where you can learn to be sexy and find your inner pantheress.”
Her dance classes, her comedy, and her overall vibe have had instant resonance with women and the queer community. But not everyone has been ready for her uncompromising confidence – and that's exactly the point. “I don't want to pander to people who don't get it,” Elouise says. "I realised that if you're a comedian for everyone, then you're a comedian for no one."
This energy has earned her the kind of ride-or-die audience that turns up to her shows wearing evil eyes and chillis (if you know, you know). She found her people performing in The Audition Room at last year’s Adelaide Fringe, now she's back to initiate new members. “I’m so pumped because I’m in The Garden of Unearthly Delights this year. I’m excited to be in the hub. . . And really excited just to meet everyone and for the people of Adelaide to get a taste of Elouise Eftos.”
The Garden's got a reputation for hosting unconventional acts, and Elouise is about to add her name to that list. Anyone coming for a standard comedy show will be in for a surprise. “People don’t think, or maybe they don’t want to believe, that I’m quite silly and a bit of a weirdo. But I very much am, and I hope that comes across in all the production elements and the moments of silliness in the show.”
With a creative team now on board, she's letting her inner theatre nerd run wild. "It's giving a bit of budget, it's giving lights, camera, action. I've added multimedia elements, and I want more surprise technical elements. I want it to be a bit arena spectacular. . . A bit 'Drag Race', with interactive stuff, so the audience feels immersed. We may as well go hard," Elouise says with a cheeky glimmer in her voice. "I want it to be a bit of a 'what the hell?' experience."
Elouise Eftos plays Le Cascadeur at The Garden of Unearthly Delights 3-9 March.
