Scout Boxall has enjoyed three sold-out, award-winning solo shows ('Good Egg', 'Buck Wild' and 'Turbo Lover'), and they're back – with 'Get Into It’.
They're the winner of Best Comedy at last year's Adelaide Fringe and they took home Melbourne International Comedy Festival's Moosehead Award in 2022 – and they've been seen on screens and stages through 'The Gala', ABC's 'The Weekly With Charlie Pickering', 'Comedy Up Late', 'Comedy Roadshow', Mardi Gras' 'Laugh Out Proud' and Splendour In The Grass.
For those new to Scout's comedy, you can usually expect anything from pithy, observational stand-up, to manic PowerPoint comedy infused with political awareness.
As for what Scout will be bringing in 'Get Into It', it'll cover everything from lockdown drills. . . To 'Eurovision'. . . To Year 10 job surveys. . . To 'The Sims'. . . To microeconomics. . . To Joan Of Arc. Never a dull moment – as Scout sandwiches brand-new content between their all-time favourite bits.
Here, ahead of their show at Melbourne's Max Watt's, the comedian we've called 'sheer perfection' lists five of the best public places to let it all out and have a good cry.
One
The Number 58 B-Class Tram.I find there’s nothing more somatically soothing than the rhythmic rocking of a two-section articulated tram built before the fall of the Berlin Wall. The number 58 is a picturesque route through bush and park land complete with a five-minute long reception dead zone. For a moment, you’re suspended in time and space, left to your own devices, coursing through nature and unable to scroll the pain away.
Two
A 24-Hour Gym.In 13th century flagellant cults, religious zealots would whip themselves to atone for their sins. The 24-hour gym is the natural habitat of the modern flagellant, fitness puritans who swing between self-aggrandisement and self-loathing depending on how many unassisted pull-ups they can perform in a single session. Gyms offer the perfect cover for the emotionally dysregulated. Disguise your crying as physical exertion or channel your ennui into a personal best chest press.
Three
McDonald’s Clifton Hill.A heritage-listed art deco brick building placed right next to a brothel, McDonald’s Clifton Hill is a must-visit for anyone at their lowest. One of my most memorable public cries happened here after being mugged at a tram stop. As I waited for my ex-girlfriend to pick me up, I consoled myself with a six-pack of chicken gristle nuggets, sweet and sour sauce, a mini M&M McFlurry, a cigarette and the grim realisation that I’d never be good enough at sex to do it for a living.
Four
Ransford Oval LARP.Don your finest fighting garb, strap into some stainless steel armour, pick up a foam sword and seek the ultimate catharsis in simulated fantasy battle. Let your chest be racked with sobs and tears roll down your cheeks as a nimble elf chants a healing spell above your head. Veteran LARPers will admire your commitment to scene and character.
Five
Max Watt's Toilets.Need to have a bawl but not wanting to be away from the action? The Max Watt's toilets are tucked away just behind the bar, allowing a quick reprieve from the venue's sensory onslaught while still close enough that you can hear everything happening on stage. Every time I have cried over the Max Watt's sinks during Comedy Festival Club, I have been comforted by the kindest strangers. They offer words of wisdom like, “She’s not worth it,” “You look amazing in mesh” and “It’s just a new moon in Scorpio, babe, it’ll pass”. I can’t guarantee you’ll have the same luck, but feel free to give it a go.
Scout Boxall plays Max Watt's (Melbourne) on 16 August.
