Wil Anderson – Fire At Wil: Political Views For The Comedy Minded at The Garden Of Unearthly Delights – Adelaide Fringe Review

The Garden Of Unearthly Delights – The Vagabond, Fri 4 Mar A loud incessant electronic beat playing as we waited for Wil Anderson set the tone for the rapid fire, high intensity performance which was to follow. And for Fire at Wil, his 17th consecutive appearance at the Adelaide Fringe, Wil Anderson chose the political path. Like every comedian around the country he laments the loss of the comedy gold served up daily by our former PM. Not once has Malcolm Turnbull provided any comedic material, and no longer can Bill Shorten just stand on his ‘I’m not Tony Abbott' policy. Anderson thinks we need a new Australia Day that means something to all Australians. Like, what happened in Adelaide, or Perth, on January 26th, 1788?? A long segment followed where he defended Adam Goodes for ‘politicising’ the office of Australian of the year, and neatly exposed the racism of those who booed him for it. His next target were the twits who complain about ‘criminals coming to our shores in boats’! (Sound familiar?) And who dislike the idea of halal (even if they don’t know what it means) and women concealing weapons under burkas. Anti-vaxxers and climate change deniers copped a bashing for ‘not trusting the science’, before, as he promised, he lightens up a little and tells of an embarrassing adventure in a Qantas lounge. Not that the political stuff wasn’t funny – it was. Fire at Wil is a great mix of humour and things that matter. What Wil Anderson does in a show like this is really important. He gets people laughing about some of the dreadful things that are happening in this country while he exposes the vacuity and hypocrisy of the racists, homophobes and climate change deniers. And he does it all in a kind of throwaway offhand manner so people feel we’re all just having a laugh together. But beneath it all are very serious issues that people - once they’ve stopped laughing - may go away and talk about. He might even change a few minds. Artful and intelligent comedy with a serious purpose. Michael Coghlan Wil Anderson - Fire At Wil continues at The Garden Of Unearthly Delights – The Vagabond from 8.15 pm until Sun 13 Mar Book at FringeTIX on 1300 621 255 or adelaidefringe.com.au. Click HERE to purchase your tickets.