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Meet The Performer – Shep Huntly

Feature-Dr Hubble's Brilliant Bubbles

Get ready to meet Shep Huntly, the mastermind behind Dr Hubble’s Brilliant Bubbles! With a career spanning over 30 countries and three decades, this performer will prepare us for a bubbling good time that promises joy, wonder, and a few surprises along the way!

About Shep Huntly

Why do you want to be an actor?

I have been a performer since I was a teenager. I have never had another job; performing is all I know. I have no other options, so I just had to get good at it!

What do you enjoy most about acting?

My job is spreading joy! What’s not to love? I love seeing the joy and wonder on the faces of the audience. I also really enjoy creating new tricks and routines and showing them to audiences.

What has been your favourite role so far in your career?

My career has stretched over 30 countries and 30 years.

I have performed in stadiums to 20,000 people, but my greatest joy is performing Dr Hubble’s Brilliant Bubbles to Australian kids and families.

Shep Huntly

What strategies do you use to overcome stage fright or nerves before a performance?

I don’t get stage fright. Even before I walked onstage at Hamer Hall last year, I just felt a calm confidence. After performing for so long, showbiz is in my bones, and being onstage is my happy place.

Have you ever had to improvise during a performance? If so, can you share an example?

Bubbles behave differently in every theatre I go to, so every show is different.

I’m always improvising, and I love it.

Is there anything else you’d like to add?

Dr Hubble’s Brilliant Bubbles is not just for children. One of the most common bits of feedback I get is when the parents say, “I think I loved it more than the kids!”

Where can patrons purchase tickets to this production?

To book tickets to Dr Hubble’s Brilliant Bubbles, please visit https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/browse-shows/dr-hubble-s-brilliant-bubbles/.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts. We can’t wait to see Dr Hubble’s Brilliant Bubbles light up the stage for both young and old. Break a leg!

Other interviews can be viewed in our Meet The Performer Series.

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Meet The Comedian – Chris Demos

Feature-Chips in the Night

Get ready to meet the affable comedian behind “Chips in the Night”! Chris Demos is all set for the Melbourne International Comedy Festival from 7-19 April. Read on to find out more about the comedian’s view on the stage, dealing with reviews, wardrobe malfunctions and more.

About Chris Demos

What do you enjoy most about acting?

Honestly, I’ve just always loved making people laugh, and the more I got into stand-up, the more I fell in love with doing it on stage and performing.

Do you want to work in film, live theatre or both?

Stand-up is my passion, but I would also really like to see where it can take me. I would love to work in television or film, in front of the camera or even writing, but sticking to the comedic side.

What strategies do you use to overcome stage fright or nerves before a performance?

I always make sure I’m really prepared when I’m trying something new, and I just have faith that it will be funny, or that I can make it funny, or that I can pull on some tested material if it doesn’t go as planned. You can’t tell which way a gig is going to go. A small gig fills me with more dread than a sold-out room because the sold-out room gives me more people to connect with who will enjoy the jokes. Having said that once I was so worked up I convinced myself that my t-shirt was choking me, so I bolted home and changed and felt better, that was some mind game I was playing because I literally put on an identical t-shirt, but it worked!

Chris Demos

How would you react if you received a negative review of a performance?

Ok, first let’s be real – no one likes a negative review, but they happen, they’ve happened to me, they’ve happened to me on the same night I’ve had a good review. The reaction goes like this, outrage first, then a bit of introspection; trying to learn something from the review, what was it they didn’t like, is it fair enough, could I have explored something more, did something not land? Then maybe what are some good take aways from the bad review, there’s usually one almost compliment in there. Then, if you can apply something to fix the show or adjust the joke to address whatever they said was lacking, you do it; if you can’t, you can’t, and just get over it. Everyone’s going to get good and bad reviews. That’s life, c’est la vie, to quote B*witched.

Have you ever had to improvise during a performance? If so, can you share an example?

It actually happens quite a lot. Recently, someone’s phone went off in the middle of a joke, specifically, it was their Siri, which loudly said, “I don’t understand,” and it got a huge laugh. Obviously, totally unexpected, but the audience loved it so much I had to pivot what I was doing, ride that wave, add to the joke that Siri had just made, and abandon where I was going. I’ve also done some tech-heavy shows in the past where the tech just hasn’t worked; that’s when you either make a joke of it or scroll through the rolodex of old jokes in your brain and try to pull one out that fits the situation.

Is there anything else you’d like to add?

Come to my show Chips in the Night at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival 7-19 April, no Mondays xoxo

Where can patrons purchase tickets to this production?

To book tickets to Chips in the Night, please visit https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/browse-shows/chips-in-the-night/.

Thank you so much for sharing your journey and insights with us. Best of luck with “Chips in the Night” at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival! Break a leg, and we hope those laughs keep rolling in!

Other interviews can be viewed in our Meet The Performer Series.

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Meet The Comedian – Jayne Steer

Feature-Addikted

Get ready to meet the sensational Addikted, the comedian who’s about to take the stage with their new show! Hailing from Brisbane and known for their unique blend of humour that mixes personal anecdotes with sharp wit, stay tuned as we discover what makes their comedy tick!

About Jayne Steer

What do you enjoy most about acting?

I think it’s the opportunity to tell a story on stage, and the adrenaline you get from knowing this is your one shot for this audience.

What has been your favourite role so far in your career?

In 2008, I was in a production by Brisbane Starlight Theatre (not sure if they still exist) of Antigone. I played the crone/wisewoman, and I absolutely loved it. Instead of it being a one-person role, it was two – I came in hidden on the back of this guy, so it just looked like he had a hunch, and then I would reveal myself onstage. It was my first professional production, and I felt I really knew I wanted to be performing. I was also so fortunate to meet my friend, Grant Buse, there, too – it was crazy that years later we both ended up in Melbourne.

What strategies do you use to overcome stage fright or nerves before a performance?

Music, lots of music – I have like a gym playlist, but for performing and it’s weird; one second, it’s Eminem – Lose Yourself, then it’s The Saddle Club Theme Song.

Jayne Steer

How would you react if you received a negative review of a performance?

Firstly, probably cry. Then, figure out how to use the feedback constructively. I bounce back pretty quickly.

Have you ever had to improvise during a performance? If so, can you share an example?

My mum passed just before my split bill show last year, Toil, Trouble & Trauma. I swear to god, every night, something happened during my set that required me to improvise. One night, the mic cut out just as I started, then suddenly came back on just as I said my last line. Another night, the whole set fell as I walked on stage. Every time something happened, I would explain it was just my mum haunting me because she didn’t approve of the show. Then, on the very last night, I received her death certificate in the mail. It was like a really bad review from her, you know.

Where can patrons purchase tickets to this production?

To book tickets to Addikted, please visit https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/browse-shows/addickted-2/.

Thanks so much for sharing your stories with us. Wishing you all the best and heaps of laughter for your upcoming show, Meet The Comedian – Addikted. Break a leg and keep those audiences in stitches!

Other interviews can be viewed in our Meet The Performer Series.

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About The Show – Bloody Good Time

Feature-Bloody Good Time

Get ready for a ride of hilarity with Cat and Caz as they bring their brand of physical sketch show comedy “Bloody Good Time”, to the stage. Incorporating a whirlwind of characters, the show includes a delightful dose of the bizarre and absurd. Buckle up for laughs, shocks, and a fresh perspective on baked beans!

About Bloody Good Time

What is this Production about?

A bonkers, goofy physical sketch show with too many props, too many costumes, too many fake accents and too many dance numbers.

What character are you playing, and what can you share with us about them?

Cat and Caz are playing over 20 characters in this show, from the duo; a Femme Fatale Canine tooth and Toothbrush Detective Brosse Dente the detective, socially inept wannabe actor Sally Carrot, existential babies and their mothers, hapless renters and shifty landlords, and some larrikin tradies Larry and Louie.

What sort of person is going to love this show?

Someone who loves the bizarre, the absurd, and the over the top. Those who laugh at a parody, and love a cheeky dance number, or 5! The songs and pop culture references will definitely resonate with millennial women.

Cat Holder
Cat Holder
Cat Holder

What will the audience be thinking about in the car as they drive home after this show?

They’ll probably wonder what the hell we were on when we came up with the show! Hopefully, they will be a bit shocked and can’t think about the show without being weirded out and laughing. It will make them think of baked beans very differently.

What’s going to surprise people about this show?

Just how many bad accents and dance numbers can we fit into one 50-minute show!

Who has the best costume?

Cat, as Cavatina Canine. She is a femme fatale with a white-blonde bob, a sparkly beret, a black-and-white outfit, and, most importantly, she is a tooth.

Where can patrons purchase tickets to this production?

To book tickets to Bloody Good Time, please visit https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/browse-shows/bloody-good-time/.

Thanks so much for chatting with us! We can’t wait to see Bloody Good Time light up the stage. Best of luck with the show, and here’s to loads of laughs and unforgettable moments. Break a leg!

Other production interviews can be viewed in our About The Production Series.

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