THERE are few funny things about returning to a gruelling schedule of lectures, assignments and exams, but a group of up-and-coming Sydney comedians hope to make UNE students laugh anyway.
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New and returning University of New England students are being treated to a free comedy night at The ’Stro on Wednesday to celebrate orientation week.
YouTube star Neel Kolhatkar will be headlining the show, coordinated by comedian Daniel Muggleton.
Muggleton said the city was a perfect place for the young comedians to test out their material.
“In America the way basically all comedians cut their teeth is doing college gigs,” Muggleton said.
“They all go out on tour and do the colleges.
“In Australia, that doesn’t really happen.
“The thing about Armidale is it’s kind of like an American college town.”
It will be Muggleton’s second trip to the city after bringing his show to UNE last year.
He said our local characters left quite an impression on him.
“The story of last time was crazy, it was very welcoming and lovely,” he said.
“After the gig this guy, who I think was a doctorate student, insisted on taking us to a jazz club.
“He insisted that we should all perform after the gig.
“The three of us from last time did little sets ... there were some people who were very confused.
“Then the same guy was like, ‘come back to my house’ – it was great.”
The Sydney-based comedian will also be joined by John Cruckshank and Jen Carnovale on the stage on Wednesday night.
The ’Stro’s Ben Bible hopes the event will see city residents mix with the new and returning students.
“It is an O Week thing, but I think in a town like Armidale it’s important to bridge the gap,” Mr Bible said.
“There are some exclusive student things during O Week – but this is for everyone.
“The ’Stro is quite a public space. We’re getting a lot of the community using the space.”
Mr Bible said audiences could expect a low-key event with lots of laughs.
“It’s a very chilled, basement nightclub kind of feel,” he said.
“We’ll probably be open a bit before the show so people can have a few drinks beforehand.”
But Mr Bible hinted the show might touch on taboo topics and feature the occasional curse word.
“It is over 18 only; there is a language warning,” he said.
“Block your ears or steer clear if you don’t like bad language.”
If all goes well on Wednesday night, Muggleton hopes to make his visits to the city more frequent.
“Hopefully with Neel we can start a thing and come back through the year,” he said.
“The university has trimesters so there’s no reason there shouldn’t be visits three times a year.”
The free event will kick off at The ’Stro from 7.30pm on Wednesday.
Kolhatkar joins Daniel Muggleton, Dave McNevin, John Cruckshank and Jen Carnovale in the city on Wednesday night.
