Maryellen welcomes her audience like we are friends. And we are friends within minutes. Or it could be that she’s performing to collect Anecdotal Evidence that she IS a good person and a darn “ray of sunshine” like she’s been described.
That’s a tough description to live up to, but I can’t disagree. In a room that fits an audience where it’s easy to learn everyone’s name, she performs like there is no place she would rather be.
She begins with her story of late diagnoses of narcolepsy and ADHD on top of her existing invisible illnesses. This type of diagnosis often relies on anecdotal evidence – kind of like comedy reviewing; we tell stories we want readers to believe – and can be a tedious process.
But Maryellen is collecting evidence that that she’s loved and liked rather than only being seen as a collection of symptoms – many of which she didn’t realise that everyone else didn’t have.
Her audience help choose the anecdotes she tells, based on signs gaffer-taped to the back wall. Our night’s group know about a tiny chocolate cake, that she’s never got the houses part of playing Monopoly and that she resents Steve Irwin. Not sharing all of the stories leaves us with enough curiosity to ensure that seeing her again is a good idea.
Even with different stories each night, her structure circles back to her early questions and everyone leaves with their own anecdotes about why it’s worth giving the big names a miss and spending time in tiny rooms with artists who make you feel like there are no people they would rather be performing for.
Maryellen: Anecdotal Evidence
Outdoor Breeze – Queen Victoria Women’s Centre, 210 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne
Performance: Saturday 8 April 2023
Season continues to 15 April 2023
Information and Bookings: www.comedyfestival.com.au
Image: Maryellen George (sourced)
Review: Anne-Marie Peard