Maybe this show should come with a disclaimer: does not actually contain any Radiohead songs, references, or Thom Yorke-inspired dance moves (see Lotus Flower). It does, however, contain a few Michael Jackson moves, a smattering of popular music and a number of entertaining jokes and tales from UK observational comedian Dan Willis.
Willis’ hour-long show isn’t exactly your run of the mill, polished to perfection stand-up routine. It’s part improvisational, part observational, part audiovisual (there is a slideshow involved) and part interactional. On this particular day dressed in a t-shirt, shorts and sandals to beat the late afternoon heat, Willis’ casual appearance matched his demeanour, which created an easy rapport, so much so that the audience was more than comfortable shouting out guesses for songs and engaging in a bit of banter. The prospect of becoming part of the show itself can be pretty daunting to wallflowers like me, but Willis’ jokes are built with and by audience members and never at their expense.
Apart from the slideshow and queue of MP3s, it all flows like a lively pub conversation. As with most story-telling and observational humour, it can be a while between moments of laughter, but when they do come, they positively erupt.
An MP3 player hanging from the back of a chair containing a selection of music is the key vehicle for the show, as Willis uses songs as entry points into winding but energetic tales from his adolescence and early adulthood. Then the music takes centrestage itself: what do Bruce Willis, Stefan Dennis (AKA Paul Robinson from Neighbours) and Bruno Mars have in common? Well, for one, they all receive comedic treatment from Willis (Dan Willis, that is) that ranges from admiration to incredulity to downright disgust.
If there is criticism for RadioHead Redux it’s that, for a show that purports to be ‘a journey into feel-good music’, it is more an inside look at Willis’ experiences as a lifelong music lover and a comedian than it is an actual voyage of musical discovery. Still, even if you took a punt on this show expecting more of the latter, you’re unlikely to come out with a frown on your face. This is the thing about music, after all, as Willis demonstrates at the start of the show. Even if you’re on a plane that appears to have an 80% chance of crashing, all you have to do is change the music and soon your mood will change with it. If there’s ever been a song that reminds you of a person, a place, a time or a feeling, you will find yourself relating to Dan Willis in this show.
RadioHead Redux is on at 4PM at the Tuxedo Cat on North Terrace every Saturday and Sunday until the 17th of March, as well as one Monday on the 11th.
