INTOXICATING SELECTION OF BIZARRE STORIES |
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) Te Radar’s Eating the Dog Notorious Entertainment (2009) | Te Radar Foundation (2010+) at Basement Theatre, Auckland From 19 May 2009 to 23 May 2009 [2hrs incl. interval (2010)] Reviewed by Sian Robertson, 20 May 2009 |
Te Radar's penchant for storytelling and some admirable research combine to form a hilarious and off-the-beaten-track history lesson. It's jam-packed with stories of New Zealand's entrepreneurial 'doofusses' and DIY nutters of the kind you won't find in a high school history book.
Without exception these enthusiastic adventurers' 'she'll be right' attitude have got them into serious trouble, much to our comedic benefit. Te Radar's ebullient PowerPoint-illustrated discourse is peopled with clueless outlaws, a vanished aeronaut, creative property developers, diehard explorers, prison escapees and insights into some of the more ridiculous geographical names, as well as his own experiences of pig hunting and a peppering of commentary on NZ politics and the contemporary media.
There are links to his show 'Hitori' on the history of the South Island, but this one covers both Islands. It's a selective history, of the dubious legacy left to us by some of the nuttier figures that 'make us who we are today', most of whom I'd never heard of. The redeeming feature of all his historical characters is that their stupidity/daring has provided us with a great source of entertainment.
This isn't your usual stand-up routine. The intensely paced monologue, with hardly a pause for breath, doesn't stop to check if we're laughing, though he somehow manages to squeeze some funny bone action in there amongst the essential and interesting background notes.
The value of the show is in its fascination factor - it's an intoxicating selection of bizarre stories, which, after the show was over, left me with a simmering warm feeling of internal laughter at the expense of the unfortunate sods that populate Eating the Dog. It would make a great comic book.
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