Tag: Bella Union

Ending the year with a bang!

I’m coming to the end of my time writing a videogame with Tin Man Games; it’s not yet been officially announced, so I can’t talk about it in specifics, but it’s been a great project to work on. My experience with branching narratives and game design has been super useful, but I’ve also learned a lot about scripting dialogue for games, and particularly some of the considerations of working in VR. I’m hoping to talk about it a lot more in future, once the word is out!

But the end of that project means space for new ones, and there are lots! I’ll soon be launching the Terry Pratchett book club podcast Pratchat with Elizabeth Flux. We’ve been talking about this for ages so it’s great to finally be making it happen! Watch out for a special announcement in the next week on that score.

I’m also getting back on the stage after too long away from performance. First up, you can catch me in a reunion show with my old sketch group, the Anarchist Guild Social Committee, on Sunday, October 15, to help farewell the Bella Union bar at Melbourne Trades Hall.

The Bella Union has been home to so many of my shows and events over the years – including Dungeon Crawl, Splendid Chaps, the launch of both seasons of Night Terrace, and many more – and like the rest of Melbourne’s artists I’ll miss it terribly. But if we can’t hang on to it, we can at least send it off in style! So join us for a collection of classic sketches, plus a few new ones – including some written by yours truly – in a few weeks’ time.

Speaking of Dungeon Crawl…the official PAX Australia schedule hasn’t yet been finalised, but I can announce that the classic improvised Dungeons & Dragons comedy show will return for a one-off performance at the expo on the Friday evening (October 27)!

I’ve seen the amazing community that has developed among PAX attendees and volunteers with the support of the local organising team over the last few years, and I am excited to bring them an evening of ridiculous, dice-fuelled improvised comedy. We have a stellar line-up of players, with Elly Squires, Bri Williams and Jordan Raskopoulos forming our adventuring party, and some very exciting potential special guests currently in negotiation. Watch this space for more news!

To finish off the year, also returning after a long absence…it’s The Terminativity! Yes, the much-talked-about comedy musical returns, and once again you can experience the Christmas joy of an unstoppable killing machine from the future going back in time to kill Mary before Jesus is born. I’m super excited to be part of this revival of a cult hit, and to be joining an amazing cast of returning and new performers. Tickets are on sale now, and if the original seasons are anything to judge by, I wouldn’t wait to book your tickets if you want to come along…

There’s more I want to tell you, but for various reasons, I can’t – not just yet! But let’s just say there’s more in store for 2018. But let’s finish off 2017 on a high first, shall we?

It’s (Big) Crunch Time

Yes, it’s that end of Science Week – the end when I’m out there spreading the word and explaining weird stuff.

Friday through Sunday is , an hour-long amble through the brain melting fields of Stephen Hawking’s twenty-year-old masterpiece. You should book if you want to come – details on the show’s page – but at the moment there are still tickets left for all three performances (1:30 matinee Friday, 8 PM Saturday and 7 PM Sunday).

Friday evening is Not the Nobel Prize, Melbourne Museum’s science comedy panel show in which four comedians – including myself – go head to head with four scientists. They’ll spin some stories, and we’ll try and decide if they’re true or false. Sadly Sam Simmons can no longer be with us, but joining myself, Courteney Hocking and Charlie Pickering will be the ever-delightful Justin Hamilton. Bound to be excellent! The show starts at 7 PM, and you should book for this one too; details can be found on the Melbourne Museum web site.

And if you need a break from all the exciting Science Week stuff, you can also catch my two improvised projects this week: Impro Sundae with The Crew is on this Sunday, 5 PM at the Bella Union, Trades Hall; and the preview season of Set List, the new improvised musical show from my theatre company Shaolin Punk, plays this Thursday to Sunday night at 9 PM  (8 PM on Sunday) at the Butterfly Club. Details can be found via those links, and I should point out that the only one of those in which I’ll be performing is Thursday night’s Set List.

T-0: Science Week launches tonight!

Yes, National Science Week 2008 officially launches tonight at the MCG right here in Melbourne, and of course your intrepid Planet Nerd science reporter and all-round science fan, Ben McKenzie, will be right there in the thick of it. Hopefully tomorrow I’ll have some photos and stories to share with you, and in the near future even some video of interviews with the stars of Australian science.

Of course I have a few events of my own during Science Week; here’s a quick reminder:

  • – my new comedy science lecture at the Royal Society of Victoria, celebrating the twentieth anniversary of that great unread classic of popular science literature: Stephen Hawking’s A Brief History of Time. It’s on the last few days of Science Week – Friday, August 22 is a special matinee, free for schools, and there are two evening performances on the 23rd and 24th. The Historic Theatre is a beautiful venue, but not very big, so be sure to book! Details are .
  • Not the Nobel Prize – Melbourne Museum’s comedy panel show returns for a third year! See me and three other comedians – Courteney Hocking, Sam Simmons and Charlie Pickering – try and sort fact from fiction in the stories presented by four actual, qualified scientists! This usually sells out, so make sure you book your tickets! Details are here.

Also during Science Week, but not part of it, are a few other projects of mine:

  • The Anarchist Guild Social Committee meeting #3 – Melbourne’s newest comedy sensation, a live sketch comedy show at the Bella Union, Trades Hall, on the third Sunday of every month. It features yours truly as a writer and performer, and always fills to capacity. Details here.
  • Set List preview season – an all-new improvised music comedy show premiering at Fringe, but you can catch an early preview at The Butterfly Club from August 21 to 24. I’ll be performing in the first show on Thursday, August 21. Details here.
  • Impro Sundae – top-notch improvised comedy with The Crew, second and fourth Sunday every month, also at the Bella Union. Details here.

Tell me doctor, where are we going this time?

The Man in the Lab Coat travels back in time tonight for a spooky Friday the 13th! See him travel back to 1985 as a special guest of megaband 80s Enuff, performing for free tonight in the Bella Union bar at Trades Hall. So come and get your dose of time travelling megahits of the 80s, and while you’re there you should probably buy your tickets to Science-ology in advance – the ever popular Tightarse Tuesdays are selling out fast!