Upcoming Festival Show

Matt vs Stupid (Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2008)

Time for an all-out assault on lazy thinking.

Previous Festival Shows

(Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2007)

This show was a reaction to the fact that while more people are making more noise than ever before, less is actually being said, thanks to a combination of deception and stupidity. Attacks on marketing, weasel words, and a few of the usual kicks at song lyrics (albeit without the technology - this was my first non-multimedia MICF show) made for a satisfying outing.

click here to read a review

(Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2006)

After Spun Out, I decided to focus more on the advertising side of things... I got a little soap-boxy when it came to talking about "spin" in news and the like, and the job description of "comedian" may have gotten a teensy bit lost. So, a new approach was called for, albeit in the surrounds of a familiar venue (Glitch Bar & Cinema, one of my favourite places to perform). The show went well, with a diverse group of people enjoying it (including Mattlisters, general public, ad execs, and even my parents).

(Melbourne Fringe Festival 2004)

Marketing is everywhere... information is managed, rather than communicated. The aim of this show was to pick apart the way we are sold products, ideas, and opinions. After doing mainly music shows for a while, I felt I needed to try something a little meatier. Mission accomplished.

Supporting Carl Barron's "Whatever Comes Next" show (Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2004)

Just a quickie spot to act as icebreaker for Carl's Crown Showroom season, then a couple of extra shows at Her Majesty's Theatre.

(Adelaide Fringe Festival 2004)

My first attempt at Adelaide Fringe, and a lot has been learned. The show was well received, and a lot of fun to do... I look forward to my next Adelaide trip.

(Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2003)

Despite the occasional hiccup, another fun addition to the Music World wars, with one of the highlights being the video debut of MvTMW girl group 3*sum.

Richard Stubbs Comperes Le Joke (Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2003)

It's not often that a high-profile comedian lends that profile to lesser-knowns during the Comedy Festival, but Richard Stubbs did exactly that. I was glad to be part of this show, as it also included fellow old hand Andrew Roper and rapid riser Janelle Koenig, both of whom I consider friends. In recreating a Melbourne comedy legacy, reviving the 'Le Joke' name that helped give him his start twenty years ago, Stubbsy gave us a great gig to work during the run of the festival, and a chance to reach a lot of people who didn't have the slightest idea who we were. My gratitude runneth over.

(Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2002)

A couple of old favourites, a large chunk on the previous year, and the first music video of the MvTMW boy band (now called Plan B) saw the war waged at the Comic's Lounge. The venue worked out really well, and a few more eyes were opened to what is being sold as music while people were entertained. To be continued…

Sessions From The Edge (Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2002)

A bit of a late-night playground, which provided my first chance to work directly with Man Bites God (see Links), as well as a muck-around with some old favourites. A fun little show.

(Melbourne Fringe Festival 2001)

Another creatively satisfying outing with the Beachhouse team, with some behind-the-scenes friction being overcome to provide a solid show. Nick and Adrian's glimpses into world history were the highlight for mine, as well as the appropriately named "Duff and Matt Argue". A worthy way to see off the Beachhouse concept.

(Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2001)

During April, most comics take Mondays off, right? Well, Mondays during the Comedy Festival in 2001 Duff, Adrian Calear, Nick Venus and I turned the Prince Patrick Hotel into "Satan's Beachhouse". Beachhouse was the original site of the segment "News That Should've Happened By Now" that was part of The Wrap (see Special Projects, further down), as well as the home of our serial, "Dante's New Inferno", which helped continue the little-acknowledged genre of "accidental impro". The show was, by all accounts, amusing but a wee bit scatty, leading to a determination to do it again, and do it right.

(Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2001)

After doing "Matt vs The Music World" in 2000 (see Other Special Projects, further down), I decided to boil down the three weeks of material into one show, as well as adding some new stuff... that's the joy of picking on bad music - there's an endless supply. I was happy with how my attacks on pop music came off in this show, and it did help demostrate that this is a concept I will be able to take into the future.

(Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2001)

A conversation with Nick Venus resulted in a resurrection - our 1999 Fringe Festival was to return. Original cast member Simon Dowling was unavailable, just beginning a new form of working life, so Christian Price of the Fake McCoys and Depardieu joined Monique Brasher, Nick and myself. The Dan O'Connell was the home of a slightly re-worked "Lost Shakespeare", as the Jeff Kennett-based scene from "Julius Caesar" was no longer relevant, and replaced by a scene with Caesar trying to chat Brutus up. Watching Christian try to keep a straight face in the final show was a joy to behold.

It was my first outing as a character in a comedy show, as we decided that plain old Matt would be superceded by Dr Braithwaite. Overall, we were happy with the outcome, but it's time to put the Lost Shakespeare to bed.

(Melbourne Fringe Festival 1999)

This would be that aforementioned show in its "pre-resurrection" form. This was the first time I'd attempted anything vaguely theatrical in some time, and I managed to assemble a cast who pulled it off with aplomb. Two things stood out for me… it was nice to get uni Student Theatre compatriot Simon Dowling out of the office and back on stage, and it was nice to get my first substantial piece of political comedy up and running (don't get me wrong, I'm as fond of snide one-liners as the next guy… more so than many… but it was nice to do something a little more solid).

The Best Of

(Melbourne International Comedy Festival 1999)

Here's the equation - two comics have done a three-part series in the previous Fringe Festival, and the venue that housed it has two nights that need filling for the upcoming Comedy Festival. Thus this "Best Of" was born, with Adrian Calear and myself only too happy to rehash the previous year's effort… especially as we'd worked our butts off getting the first version happening.

(Melbourne Fringe Festival 1998)

After getting to know Adrian, and finding out that we are both qualified as English teachers (Adrian going so far as to hold an actual full-on teaching job), the idea was born. Two comics analysing the language, with emphasis on three dialects - Telespeak (the language of the idiot box), Officialspeak (the language of politicians and bureaucrats) and Profanity. This was the first show I've done in the "different material each week" form, which I am fond of, and was one that really pushed me as a comedian. Plus the final product was a lot of fun, and was the beginning of a working partnership that I have enjoyed ever since. Each week also featured a section that was eventually to become its own show - the Lost Shakespeare.

(Melbourne International Comedy Festival 1998)

A beginning of sorts… my first long-form show, outlining the trials and tribulations of being a mobile DJ. Not confident enough to simply stand and talk for an hour, I went for the full multimedia experience, with video and audio sections. It was a muddle, but was also something I needed to do. It was also the first time I did any music analysis, which is now a staple of my performance.

Other Special Projects

Love & Hate (December 2007)

As I started planning for MICF 2008, I decided I needed to shake things up a little. So, the idea came for Love & Hate... performing with a comedian whose work I enjoy, but who has a very different style to mine (Gavin Baskerville), I did something that has barely been evident in previous projects; I talked about me. Although my contribution was half of the usual length time-wise, this was the most personal show I've ever done, and has hopefully opened up my style a little as I head back into more familiar, more combative territory.

Matt vs The Music World: The Year In Review (2006 edition)

The fifth and final Year In Review show, and in front of a gathering of the faithful, one last stoush with pop's villians. The guests were Man Bites God frontman James Hazelden, Geraldine Quinn and Adam Richard, and they helped give the format an appropriate send-off. I may do another MvTMW show in festivals or the like outside Melbourne, but as far as my home town is concerned, it's done.

Matt vs The Music World: The Year In Review (2005 edition)

Due to the overfilling of Glitch in 2004, we ran two sessions of MvTMW on one night, thus squeezing a few more folk in. As well as Man Bites God once again entertaining the audience by aggravating me, I was glad to introduce Geraldine Quinn to the mix. If you read any of her reviews for MICF 2006, you'll know her star is rising. All in all, another fun outing.

Matt vs The Music World: The Year In Review (2004 edition)

Two versions of the Year In Review show existed in 2004. In the first, we slightly overfilled a magnificent venue in Fitzroy called Glitch Bar & Cinema... unless your profession relates to fire regulations, in which case... we didn't. By we, I mean Man Bites God (who opened the show in sterling fashion, although the "drum roll" pun may just be beyond forgiveness) and myself. The venue was perfect, and the audience was enthusiastic, despite the sardinesque conditions. For the second incarnation, I was joined by Adam Richard and the Fake McCoys for a road trip down to Geelong - the National Hotel, to be more specific - where a good time was had by all. I look forward to maintaining my relationship with these venues, and building to more fun and excitement in the future.

Matt vs The Music World: The Year In Review (2003 edition)

After seeing leading Melbourne blues singer Chris Wilson at the Clifton Hill Hotel, I was struck by the fact that the back room there would be ideal for comedy. So I decided to take the Year In Review show to this untested-for-comedy ground, being joined once again by Adam Richard and Man Bites God, plus adding Kim Hope and The Fake McCoys to the mix. The night was another successful round of pop-kicking, with a particularly enjoyable double act with Mr Richard (ironically now an employee of Fox FM).

The Weekly Wrap (May-December 2001 and 2002)

After completing the first season of Satan's Beachhouse during the 2001 Comedy Festival, Nick Venus was handed Monday nights at the Comic's Lounge to play with, his first act being to recruit fellow Beachhousers Adrian Calear, Duff and myself. We went on to recruit several other acts, including Barfoot & Cantone, Charlie Pickering, Michael Chamberlain, Danny McGinlay and the Dodge, and were given a brief to take apart the week's news and events. The Weekly Wrap was born.

Over the following 20 months, some of the most innovative, fresh and spontaneous comedy seen in Melbourne for years was to come out of this show. Many top comedians dropped in to do guests spots, other up-and-comers such as Adam & Richard McKenzie, Courteney Hocking, Man Bites God, and Vaya & Jo became part of the regular cast. The challenge was to produce all-new material and performances each week, which is highly unusual in live comedy, and was met and met well.

This show pushed all who were involved to be better performers and writers as only a regular deadline can - as well as some healthy competition within the show. There is a hope that the Wrap will be revived at some point, but for now it is a treasured memory for all who were part of it, especially me... I owe much of my development as a comedian over the last two years to this venture.

Matt vs The Music World: The Year In Review (December 2002)

A cross between the original and the festival version - a three-bracket extravaganza including Dave Callan, Adam Richard, Man Bites God and, in one of their final performances, The Dodge. The idea was to set up a prototype format for me to do every December, reporting on each year's chart follies... it appears to have worked, so if all continues to go to plan, notch this one up as the beginning of an annual comedic brawl.

Matt vs The Music World (July 2000)

Damn, THIS one was fun. Expelling as much bile on the pop charts as I could in one hit, this is the "solo" project I am most proud of (I used the inverted commas primarily because the show had more guests than a Novotel). Different material each week, the concept was divided into three shows - Dance/Pop, Rock/Pop and Love Songs/Ballads. Notable features included…

· The creation, split and reuniting of manufactured boy band "Depardieu".
· The feud between this show and "The Planet" over musical tastes, which expanded to include Adrian and Duff.
· On the unfortunate side, Dave O'Neil taking a major bump and fracturing a vertebra, an anecdote that has outlasted the fame of the show itself.
· Dave Grant stepping in to take over from someone who bailed from a guest spot at the eleventh hour, saving my arse quite convincingly.
· The guest list - Adrian Calear, Dave Grant, Dave O'Neil, Janet A. McLeod, Duff, Kim Hope, Fred Rowan, Nick Venus and of course Depardieu (Kynan Barker, Scott Brennan, Gerard McCullogh, Christian Price and Toby Sullivan)

This show, and the faith that so many people showed in me to become part of it, was truly pivotal in my career and development, and the resulting debt that I owe to these people is truly enormous.

Dark Side… of Love (July 1997)

Two people presenting shortish works, mine being the embryonic form of what would become my first Comedy Festival show, Dark Side Of The Mirrorball. Counterpointing my stage-based therapy session on my time as a mobile DJ was the theatrical piece Stuck Up A Tree In The Forest Of Love, devised and performed by Emily Collier. An odd combination, but nonetheless a reasonably successful one, particularly for me as this represented my first departure from performing at the regular comedy rooms.