Just like a ‘Choose Your Own Adventure’ book, you never know where you’ll end up when Rhys Darby is in the building.
Playing to a sold-out show at Brisbane’s Tivoli Theatre on Thursday night, Rhys Darby had the audience in the palm of his hands. To kick off the night we were greeted not with the usual support act, but with one of Darby’s skit characters – park ranger Bill Napier, who educated the audience on such topics as the off-cuts of fingerless gloves and how they could be used to help homeless caterpillars.
Darby's second act followed a crafty set from New Zealand comic Jamie Bowen. When he launched into his physical comedy revolving around his tight, hipster jeans, and how he used them to trap pickpockets when working for the New Zealand police, we were wondering how this level of energy could be sustained for the whole night. But it was clear after the first five minutes, it was we who would have to keep up.
From his time in the New Zealand army, to his honeymoon in the jungles of Thailand, Darby brought his stories to life showing aided by his expert skills in mime and sound effects. He took us to the battlefield where he defeated the enemy with nothing but his machine gun and lazer beam tactics (the army was too poor for real ammunition) – the audience is in stitches throughout.
There were stories of futuristic technology and how the latest hand dryers are secretly designed to baffle hipsters, the lost art of ‘choose your own adventure’ books, how his 90s dance moves eventually won over his future wife Rosie, and the pleasures of married life and putting up with the nagging ‘homing signal’.
It’s nice to think that after huge success with Flight Of The Concords, Rhys Darby will no doubt keep growing his fan base and keep selling out shows with a repertoire this strong.
