Upside Adelaide
ADELAIDE FRINGE REVIEW 2023:
Stephen K Amos: Before and Laughter
Garden of Unearthly Delights
By Daisy Sumersford, 6 March 2023
Stephen K Amos’s affection and warmth for us Aussies is evident (as suggested by his eerily accurate impersonation of the accent and dare I say, Bogan-twang!)
Stephen addresses a post-apocalyptic world (COVID) and reminds us what has always been our greatest antidote and most healing medicine – laughter!
Stephen’s show Before and Laughter feels like a nice warm hug from an estranged cousin whose understanding of the word moderation you’ve always been sceptical of.
Stephen understands the need for laughter as his show provokes a newfound sense of community within this strange new (and sometimes divided) world, we now find ourselves living in…
Like most comics, Stephen addresses woke culture and the evident rise in the now recreational activity of finding the opportunity to take offense.
Whilst he doesn’t speak of it in such matter-of-fact terms, he dances around the modernised terminology by simply speaking on the need to take things a little less seriously, live in the moment and to HAVE A GOOD OLD-FASHIONED LAUGH!
Stephen K Amos is forever a smooth operator navigating side-splitting “back and forth” working as an intergenerational translator!
Stephen seamlessly bridges the generation gap within his audience by bringing us all in on the punch line and, if required, translating some older pop-cultural references into palatable idioms for the Zoomers.
Stephen builds instant rapport with his audience as his flow and banter with his showgoers comes so organically that you’d almost think it were scripted…
Before and Laughter gives us what we really need as an audience – an opportunity to bond over a shared sense of humour and longing to feel a sense of unity.
Stephen K Amos’s show at this year’s Adelaide Fringe Festival operates as a vehicle for cohesion and harmony which is driven through the art of comedy!
It also serves as a friendly reminder that we’re here for a good time, not a long time!
Go and see Stephen K Amos: Before and Laughter as it is just so necessary.
5 Stars.