What do you get when you take two leading Australian comedians, throw some ‘under wraps’ local guests into the mix along with some passively protesting knitting nannas and add a dash of Port Douglas panache? The funniest night of Carnivale, that’s what.
This year’s Big Laugh at QT Resort on May 29 features Ellen Briggs and Lindsay Webb. She is the one who says it like it is and hasn’t looked back since winning Foxtel’s ‘Be A Comedian’ competition in 2006 and performing at Triple J’s 2007 Raw Comedy.
Webb is Queensland’s favourite funny son who is fresh from performing with Dave Hughes and a run of sell-out shows at Adelaide Fringe Festival.
Briggs promises the audience can expect a great night. “Lindsay and I have toured a lot together and are very different performers so, between us, there really is something for everyone,” she said.
“I will just be myself on stage and expect that most women will think as they are watching me, ‘oh, my God, I do that’ or ‘she’s just like me’, and most men will be thinking, ‘thank God I’m not married to her!’
“I am very much a storyteller so my inspiration comes from all aspects of my everyday life – husband, kids, the town I live in, my dog, my farm. There is a bit of truth in pretty much everything I say on stage, sometimes it’s the actual truth. That old saying, ‘truth is stranger than fiction’ is the same for comedy.
“I get such a buzz out of seeing and hearing a roomful of people laugh and say that they feel exactly the same way about something I’ve talked about on stage.
“That connection with the crowd is fantastic. To have an idea, to turn it into comedy and then to perform it is really such a thrill. It is almost as good as chocolate.”
Ellen Briggs regularly performs around the country with the likes of Will Anderson, Peter Hellier, Charlie Pickering, Tahir, Sean Chulburra and Puppetry of the Penis.
Event organiser Melinda Norris said this year the Big Laugh was raising funds for the Knitting Nannas Against Gas (KNAG).
KNAG has emerged as a brilliant creative force against the unconventional and harmful coal seam gas industry and have made their voices heard by knitting gracefully outside protest sites, at court appearances of those arrested – even at the offices of local politicians.
The Nannas are not politically aligned – they like to annoy all politicians equally and it drives elected representatives crazy and we love that.
“Even if you can’t make it to the Big Laugh show, you can still donate to this great cause by going to the ticketing page and following the prompts. All donations are tax deductable,” Ms Norris added.
“This great two-act Aussie line-up of Ellen Briggs and Lindsay Webb, with some special local guests will have you in stitches – plain and purl!”
Port Douglas Carnivale general manager Roy Weavers said the Big Laugh was one of the most popular annual Carnivale events. “We are looking forward to all the laughs at QT Resort on May 29,” he said.
