08 Dec More Comedy for Everybody Please

Something I didn’t realize before coming to San Francisco is how great the stand-up comedy scene is here. I’m definitely into comedy, but I guess I was too focused on some of the other cool stuff that California has to offer and didn’t think about the pretty obvious fact that there would be an abundance of great performances to see.

Melbourne has its share of stand-up. We have a few pretty cool comedy clubs, many talented, super-funny local artists, and an annual festival that lasts a couple of weeks, during week multiple performances happen every night in locations all around the city. International artists (usually from the U.S.) are a big deal, can be difficult to get tickets to (depending on how popular they are), and are normally pretty expensive to see.

Admittedly, I only realized that I should be taking advantage of the comedy situation here about six months into my stay. There is literally something awesome happening every week. Performers that I’ve admired for years and exercise their talents not just through stand-up, but also writing for film and television, acting, and have been on classic shows like Saturday Night Live play at clubs all around the city for an average of between 25 and 40 bucks. Between that and a couple of beers, you can quite easily set yourself up for a pretty excellent night out, if you ask me.

Most recently I saw Bobby Lee. He’s done a bunch of stuff including SNL and I’ve been into him for years. It was literally a week before he played that I had a quick look online to see who was in town and noticed that he’d be at Punch Line (one of the more established clubs in town; definitely worth checking out). I was stoked. So yeah. If you’ve been to all the touristy spots and you’re looking for something new to get into, check out the comedy scene. You might be surprised who you get to see.