melbourne comedy - Whats The Show

Checked Out: The Musical

10/10/2025 Debra Campbell🥇🔥🦉🎭🎶

Checked Out: The Musical Rating

★★★★★

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Checked Out: The Musical – A musical comedy about the mundane lives of supermarket workers in a cost of living crisis.

Check in, deal with angry customers. Check out, repeat again tomorrow. Connell and Lee, the team behind GRAA-nominated musical ‘A Zoom Group Project’ have joined forces again to create this brand-new supermarket musical comedy premiering at Melbourne Fringe 2025. This time they are using their years of retail experience as creative fuel because nothing makes a story sing like hating your job does. In ‘Checked Out: The Musical’ a group of employees are sick of their mundane lives working for big supermarket chain Woles, who still pay them minimum wage despite its recent record profits. What’s the manager’s solution to staff complaints? Throwing a party to celebrate the company’s profits and making attendance mandatory of course!

As I watched this cast of comrades band together to unite against the epitome of capitalism: their workplace, I laughed, laughed and laughed again.

This show deserves the highest accolades and surely it is set to win some of the current Melbourne Fringe Festival awards. The entire audience would agree going by their laughter and cheering. I don’t think there was ever someone not laughing throughout 90% of the show – there are a few serious moments (not!).

It is simply put together on stage with boxes coloured in like supermarket aisles, something a little like an advanced kinder project so you’re wondering what’s going to go on here… then one by one starting their day in the store enter 5 very different staff members … mops with eyes as fierce customers, register and clock on-off beeps, announcement microphones and the big ‘boss’ guy up the top over the loud speaker of course (we don’t get to see him, but he’s equally as talented as the rest of the cast).

‘Price gouging’ clap along was the best! Finger puppets not dissimilar to ones we all frequently recognise instantly, the team of ‘Woles’ in their blue aprons, Bridget, Jasmine, Taylor, Seb and Jack hit every silly, funny but scarily true to life topic we experience in shopping today and working in retail spot on!

I am personally constantly complaining of how much milk and bread and a few fruit and veg will set me back. These guys take it to the next level, but when I thought about it, it’s not next level, these prices are reality!

Their 10cent per hour pay rise is also reality, and they have to fight for it!

Swapping out ‘Clean Up’ for ‘Love in Aisle 9’ may be the only highlight of a day otherwise full of being scolded by customers, bossy bosses and trying to keep to an impossible down-to-the second time schedule. Of course, don’t take your break early and certainly don’t be 17 seconds over returning to your duties!

Will Jack be able to play his songs at the MCG? Will Jasmine continue to be excited as the newest employee? Will Seb get to take his long service leave in Vietnam? Will Taylor ever do up her apron and will supervisor Bridget finally get to head up the company, or will she decide to band with her team?

The beaming smiles and genuine love for what they do on stage giving it their all, these talented bright bubby actors and actresses totally nailed this plot and I can’t wait to see what they do next!

Hopefully major media will go along and see this show, I could see it tour!

Enjoy!!

Ticket Link: https://www.melbournefringe.com.au/whats-on/events/checked-out-the-musical

Playing 8 – 12 October 2025

Well organised ticketing and access, lots of volunteers helping to get you into the right area – the Fringe Festival is fantastic with so much to choose from, but definitely DON’T MISS this one ‘CHECKED OUT – THE MUSCAL!’

WRITTEN BY
Josh Connell and Steph Lee
LIGHTING DESIGN
Tom Vulcan
DIRECTED BY
Steph Lee
CAST
Anita Mei La Terra
Oscar O’Brien
Jackson Cross
An Dang
Shanu Sobti

Venue: Solidarity Hall at Festival Hub: Trades Hall, Cnr Lygon & Victoria Sts, Carlton

EVENT WARNING
Contains strobe lighting, Mild coarse language
CONTENT WARNING
Misogyny, Sexual References

To book tickets to Checked Out: The Musical, please visit https://www.melbournefringe.com.au/whats-on/events/checked-out-the-musical.

Photographer: Leo Cherry

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Greeking Out

09/10/2025 Adam Miller⭐

Greeking Out Rating

★★★★★

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Greeking Out reminded me why I love fringe theatre. At its best, fringe is lean and mean, a little scrappy, full of wit and invention and always just outside the norm. Rebecca Perich’s show delivered all of that in spades. This was peak fringe and I loved everything about it.

The premise is deceptively simple: a lecture on Greek mythology, given from a stool with a projector and an easel as props. Yet from that stripped-back set, Perich created an hour of comedy, storytelling and mythological deep-diving that was as enlightening as it was entertaining. The projector doubled as a lecturer’s whiteboard, lighting shifts offered just enough atmosphere and the black cloth-draped brick walls of the pop-up venue made the room feel like the kind of black box theatre where ideas are meant to spark. Even the old school seating added to the classroom vibe. It was, in every sense, authentic fringe.

What struck me most was Perich’s ability to master two seemingly opposite demands: making the audience laugh while also making them think. The show had proper laugh-out-loud moments There were cheeky asides, call-and-response games and even bursts of light choreography that pulled us into her world. But it also had a depth that stayed with me long after. I really loved how Perich didn’t just retell myths. She unpacked their cultural resonance, wove them into pop culture touchpoints and reminded us why these ancient stories still matter. Her skill lay in making the complex simple, without ever dumbing it down.

Fringe theatre can sometimes alienate, but Perich did the opposite. She met her audience exactly where we were, adapting her pace, her explanations and even her jokes to ensure accessibility. She was like that favourite teacher who can’t help but share their hyperfocus with you, dragging you joyfully into side quests and tangents like the naming of Europe or the complex family tree of Greek gods. These digressions were never wasted, they added texture and charm, much like the best detours on a road trip.

The 60-minute format was exactly right. As one of my favourite theatre sayings goes, “Everything good is better shorter”. Perich clearly understands this. The show was tight, sharp and left me wanting more. By the end, I wasn’t just entertained, I was ready to sign up for Mythology 201.

Rebecca Perich is a gifted storyteller, part comedian and part lecturer, who has found a form that feels utterly her own. She can take a myth thousands of years old and make it feel like gossip you’ve just overheard at the bar. That’s no small feat. Greeking Out was smart, funny and brimming with charm. More importantly, it was a reminder of why myth still holds power in our lives.
I laughed, I learned and I can’t wait for the next class. That’s my takeaway and I suspect anyone lucky enough to see this show will feel the same.

To book tickets to Greeking Out, please visit https://www.melbournefringe.com.au/whats-on/events/greeking-out.

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Powerful, Passionate, and Fantastic

02/10/2025 Karen Yee⭐🦉

The Comedy Games with Coach Mon Rating

★★★★★

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Comedy Games With Coach Mon is now on at the Ivanhoe Library & Cultural Hub’s Yarra-me Djila Theatrette as part of the Melbourne Fringe. Aimed at children age 4 and up, the show is a really fun way to introduce your junior primary and pre-school kids to interactive live theatre. It’s a great antidote to the effects of too much screen time – it’s upbeat, inclusive, funny and interactive. It stimulates the imagination and reminds us how to play. The age appropriate humour is infectious, and a lot of it is supplied organically by the children themselves. I highly recommend it.

The theatrette is cosy, clean and family-friendly. Coach Mon makes your child feel at home by introducing herself to each child and learning their names before the show starts, so I recommend getting there a little early to settle into the space. There is ample parking at the Ivanhoe venue which also has a lovely café and a library on the same level.

The theme of the show is sports. Coach Mon’s dream is to be a sports coach and she is looking for athletes who are Powerful, Passionate, and Fantastic. There’s a good dose of the ridiculous, which kids love, so we’ll be starting with eyebrow push-ups and weight-lifting with marshmallows on a skewer, for starters. Sometimes Coach Mon might need some coaching herself. Does she really know what hurdles are? Why is she asking for child hurdles – “churdles”? Will she jump over them or fly?

Adults – you will not be bored! Coach Mon knows how to keep the kids’ attention with singing, acrobatics, jokes, miming and clowning-skills, all with a warm connected personality. She knows how to keep them quietly in their seat, if needed, and, conversely, how to get them up and noisy depending on the scene of the show. You’ll be able to relax and enjoy the antics with your child, and possibly even take part in some synchronised swimming!

The fast pace of the show is underscored by well-chosen classical and pop-rock songs. For example, who doesn’t like a slow-mo running race with Chariots of Fire as the soundtrack? I loved that this show was exposing the young ones to really good music from Peer Gynt Suite’s Hall of the Mountain King to Eye of the Tiger. We might know these songs, but it might just be the first time the little ones get to hear it.

After the show, Coach Mon stayed to chat to kids and adults as they were leaving. I had a chat to her too and discovered that Coach Mon is the multi-talented Monique Warren who is an actor, musician, educator, choir director and clown. She grew up singing in the Australian Girls Choir and then stayed on as a choir teacher for 12 years. Her inspiration for the show came out of blue one day while she was teaching an online co-curricular drama class online during COVID lockdown in 2021. Worn out by the sheer boredom she had had enough and walked away from the faces on the computer screen. A minute later, she was back with sports cap on and tennis ball in hand and announced “I’m Coach Mon. Let’s play!”.

Monique Warren’s dream is to build her kids show to be a regular school holiday gig. The joy she gets from doing the show is from bringing people together and that is her passion. It’s a Passion that is Powerful and her show is Fantastic! Go see it before it closes. Let’s play!

To book tickets to The Comedy Games with Coach Mon, please visit https://www.melbournefringe.com.au/whats-on/events/the-comedy-games-with-coach-mon.

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Break a Leg at The MC Showroom

24/08/2025 Amanda Lee Starkey🥉

Break A Leg Rating

★★★★★

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Imagine a bunch of social-media influencers landing roles in a high-stakes, Broadway-bound production—with zero stage chops. Rehearsals devolve into diva meltdowns, ego clashes, and utter mayhem. Then, in a desperate bid for team-building, they conjure spirits with a fake Ouija board… but the real ghosts show up. Cue the body-swap chaos—suddenly everyone’s in each other’s shoes, and opening night is just around the corner.

This is Break a Leg, a two-act comedy written and directed by Jason Ekonomides, playing at The MC Showroom from August 20 to 24, 2025

Prahran’s MC Showroom is an ideal match for this story. The intimate black-box layout ensures every grimace, costume flop, and ghostly flicker is close enough to touch. With seating capacity hovering around 80–100 depending on layout , the audience becomes part of the mayhem—not just observers. With minimal props, set design and an intimate atmosphere, actors are forced to rely on their craft- which is a huge pay off. It makes the production that much more authentic, as though we are just voyeurs, invited in for a sneak peek.

The performance offers quick pacing and over-the-top personalities ensure there’s never a dull moment. Body-swapping naturally demands expressive performance—from mannerisms to vocal tone—and the comedy thrives on it. The supernatural element isn’t just for show; it fuels plot momentum and raises the stakes. There are so many relatable moments for anyone who’s ever worked in a creative project—full of egos, deadlines, and “what even is blocking?” which garnered quite a few laughs from the audience. There are so many moments that garnered laughs, it’s hard to pinpoint the best one, which adds credibility to the skills of the cast, making the show incredibly entertaining. After all, when there’s no huge set and props are minimal, actors are left to their skills to draw the audience in, and they manage to succeed in this quite well.

Break a Leg is a rambunctious backstage farce that pairs clever body-swap hijinks with a comedic look at influencer culture and theatrical chaos. Performed in the cozy, tech-equipped intimacy of The MC Showroom, it’s a sharp, delightful night of theatre.

If you’re into rowdy humour, spirited performances, or backstage shows gone wildly off script—this one’s for you.

To book tickets to Break A Leg , please visit https://www.themcshowroom.com/whatson/break-a-leg.

Photographer: Billie Kennedy

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