Anne Edmonds @ Underbelly, Med Quad
Barry Award nominee Anne Edmonds brings an engaging show to Underbelly
Anne Edmonds has storytelling chops and a decent skill in characterisation, with the odd over-the-top nugget of physical humour where required, and she is certainly never less than engaging as she comments on her own failures, those of other people, and the ups and downs of a selection of delightful Australian caricatures. The elements of the show that work best involve tales of her own family, in particular her elderly father – stories that maintain the laughs but add a relatable touch that the rest of the show attempts in places but rarely matches.
Edmonds strives to give a darker edge to some of the stories, which can feel odd in context, and a dig at Jim Jeffries-style humour and its audiences appears wildly misplaced. The show's irregular returns to the framing story, meanwhile, highlight a weak structure. Edmonds' charisma and energy, however, is frequently enough to look past this, confirming that relying on an hour of well told stories and jokes is more than enough for most audiences.