Making its South Australian premiere, ‘Stories Of Ghosts, Death & Mental Breakdowns’ combines informal storytelling and comedy to create an experience that might be therapeutic for the performers but is likely to garner mixed results from the audience.
Hosted by Chetan Singh (or Aditya Gautam depending on the performance), the show brings together a revolving group of comedians who share deeply personal stories about everything from spooky encounters, poor life choices, painful family legacies and random events that completely changed their lives.
As the show’s MC and opening act, Singh began the (6 March) performance with a strange and spooky tale about an experience he and his fellow housemates had in their early days of living in Australia. Undeniably spine tingling, this was sadly the only ghostly tale in a show whose title is more metaphorical than realistic and Singh’s admission that past audiences had come expecting ghost stories did not come as a surprise to me.
Other performers included Sian Smyth whose inconceivably true story about falling into the depths of a mental health crisis after meeting a cannibal warlord boggled the mind. Chaotically dressed Duuvy Jester delivered a darkly funny performance with a story about how owning a café led to a life filled with mafia men, alien abductions and broken arms; while Eddi Dbr regaled the audience with her post break-up, ‘Eat, Pray, Love’ inspired experience. Rob Farley delivered a vulnerable and powerful performance speaking about how wartime experiences left a lasting impact on the men in his family while Alex Main’s performance explored the impacts of alcoholism and drinking.
Featuring an eclectic mix of stories and performers, ‘Stories Of Ghosts, Death & Mental Breakdowns’ was at times evocative, funny and thought provoking, but ultimately it wasn’t my cup of tea.
