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Review: Wil Anderson Wilegal

The Melbourne International Comedy Festival has kicked off for another year, and I was lucky enough to be able to get tickets to so many amazing comedians that I wanted to see. So I've decided to review all the shows I see, and to include some general comedy festival tips as well (scroll to the end for those!). Today, the one we have all been waiting for, Wil Anderson!


If, like me, you are a big fan of Wil, you have been waiting months for this show, for him to finally tell the story of the day he got arrested in Wagga Wagga. He announced awhile ago that he would be using this experience as the basis for this year's show, and has teased it a bit on his podcast, without giving anything away. 

Having seen many of Wil's stand up shows over the years, I have always found them to be balanced observations of the world, whether he's discussing the latest ridiculous statement from one of our ignorant politicians, or why we should change the date of Australia Day. He poses rational arguments in a way that makes us agree, and also, of course, makes us laugh.

To talk about a situation like this, where you are considered enough of a threat to others to have law enforcement called on you, without being negative about the people involved, is incredibly gracious. I don't think a lot of people would be able to do that. Undoubtedly, anybody would be angry after being put in this situation, but Wil has used his show to look at this experience objectively, and turned a low point of his life into a hilarious anecdote. 

Wil has always used parts of his life in his comedy, talking openly about his pets, his girlfriend, his health issues, and his time growing up on a farm. This show feels different though, it's more personal somehow. To be in the audience of Wilegal is to feel a part of something. Perhaps it is the catharsis of it, that this story finally gets to be told to an audience who will listen, and understand. 

I realise I made this sound kind of dark, but it is really fucking funny. There is a lot of information packed into that hour, so that you barely get to take a breath between jokes. My face ached afterwards, from laughing so much.  

Wilegal is a change of tone from past shows, so if you are someone who enjoys Wil's humour, but doesn't like the political aspects of comedy so much, then this is the show for you. You can expect the same non-stop hilarity as his previous shows and experience a more personal story.

If you have seen his shows before and are debating seeing him again (oh, we've already seen him, let's see someone different), I would highly recommend going. It's different, and it feels important. I think this is a peak moment. Wil is a comedian that seems to get better every year, and this is probably his best show yet. If you have never seen one of Wil's shows, then this is a good one to start with. 

If you want more Wil, I would highly recommend his podcasts TOFOP, which he does weekly with Charlie Clausen, and Wilosophy, where he interviews a variety of interesting guests. 


Where can you find Wil?

He has shows for the whole run of the festival, followed by dates in Perth, Canberra and Sydney. Find tickets here: http://comedy.com.au/tour/wil-anderson-wilegal/

On his podcasts TOFOP, FOFOP, 2 Guys 1 Cup, and Wilosophy.

On Triple M Hot Breakfast, weekdays 6-9am.

On his TV show Gruen, which you can catch up on iView here: https://iview.abc.net.au/collection/gruen






Tips for visiting the Comedy Festival:

TICKETS
Of course, all the big acts sell out pretty quickly, but if you can't get tickets to who you wanted, or if you're just not sure who to see, why not try someone new? If you head to Town Hall, you will see so many people handing out flyers for shows, this is also great for last minute tickets, if you have seen an early show and want to extend your comedy fix for the night. If you're not sure who to see, it can also be great to see a show with more than one comedian, so you get a bit of variety.
There can be massive queues if you're buying them on the night though, so if you can it's best to book in advance, which you can do here: https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2018

PARKING
If you're driving into the city, parking can cause massive anxiety, where to park, does it cost money, how far is it from the venue, etc. I've found the best thing to do is to pre-book your parking online, which you can do here: https://www.wilsonparking.com.au/book-a-bay. You just find the closest parking lot to your venue, book it, and when you show up you just tap your card to enter and exit. It's also sometimes a bit cheaper, but it is cheap anyway, usually about $6 for the night. You also get Velocity points, which is an extra bonus.

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