Every year at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, there are a plethora of really lovely shows, including those charming comedians you can have a giggle at without really engaging your brain. And that’s totally cool. A lot is going on in the world.
Switching off with a little silliness should be bulk billable on Medicare. But every once in a while, a revelatory show swings in like a superhero to save the day with an unforgettably brilliant game-changer that’s not only hysterically funny but also feels like the answer to some of that troubling stuff niggling at the back of your brain.
If you’ve been worried by the increase in attacks on the trans community of late, I cannot stress enough how good it will be for your soul if you make like Batman and cape-paraglide into the Town Hall’s powder room to see all-singing, all-dancing superstar Jordan Gray. The irrepressible British comedian and singer-songwriter is one of the funniest, fiercest and freshest forces to touch down in Melbourne in many a year. A proud trans woman who hosts the popular podcast Transplaining, she has a simple question to ask.
If the folks who bombard her with vile attacks online can turn out in droves for superhero movies like Chris Nolan’s Christian Bale and Heath Ledger-led The Dark Knight and are totally fine with Bruce Wayne identifying as a bat, then what the hell is their problem with actual real-life humans hoping to find happiness by embracing their true gender identity?
The show name, and a telephone booth in the background, are a neat nod to this playful central premise. Working on two levels, it calls to mind the Superman catchphrase and also the mean-spirited doubt of some audience members who won’t accept the “husky-voiced” Gray for who she really is. The same sort of person who will call Gray out for being mean to, I shit you not, Hitler. Of course, this line was in the show when she performed it at the Edinburgh Fringe. Tragically, it’s taken on greater significance following TERFS standing side-by-side with Nazi’s saluting in front of the Victorian parliament.
If you’re a wee bit worried the show will be too heavy going, fear not. It’s the exact opposite. A bundle of unbridled joy, Gray is a turbo-charged ray of sunshine who soars across the stage, pulling shapes like a particularly balletic superhero. Working up a sweat as she expertly turns transphobia on its head, she has the kind of vocal ability that saw her appear on The Voice. She can play the keyboard like a whizz and has a wicked way with witty rhymes. The Easter-themed opener, questioning which kind of undead creature Jesus was, is uproariously good/naughty. By the empowering closer, your heart will be fit to burst free, much like your guffawing snort laughs.
An all-inclusive performer, Gray worked beautifully with a willing 33-years married man and woman in the front row the night we saw the show. She’s not here to make fun of folks who may not know much about transitioning. Like the very best superheroes, Gray wants us all to stand strong together, whether you’re cis, trans, non-binary or a bat.
Catch Is it a Bird? at the Melbourne Town Hall until April 23. You can book tickets to see Jordan Gray on the MICF website here.
