Stand Up Ladies (Triple R, Melbourne)

By Hannah Reich

Late last year I went along to an open mic night to support a
friend of mine, Tash, who had just begun performing stand up
comedy. She performed at a seedy backpacker bar in Melbourne’s CBD
and though I laughed heartily at her set, I was shocked at what I
heard coming out of the mouth of the MC and many other performers
that night. At times I wanted to walk out, to leave behind the
string of racist, sexist, transphobic and ableist remarks that
these guys had tried to pass off as “comedy.” It made me wonder why
Tash and the other female comedian performing that night (on a set
list of around 12) would stand up in a room like that and put up
with that nonsense.

So this documentary asks the question: If there are countless funny
ladies proving that the old adage that women aren’t funny is
totally wrong, why are there still a lot fewer women (or
female-identifying persons) at the grassroots level of the comedy
world, in the open mic scene? I followed Tash to open mic nights
around Melbourne and spoke with other women in the scene including
comedian Lauren Bok, comedy writer Alex Neill, and Judith Lucy, the
undeniable first lady of Australian comedy. My question was a hard
one and the answer isn’t clear but it’s still a question worth
asking. We need to keep asking these difficult questions in a world
where women are still outnumbered in so many fields, where women
are paid 17% less than men, and where women’s rights and voices are
still being silenced. Ultimately, whatever the answer, more women
need to get up, speak up and (do) stand up.

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