It would probably help your appreciation of Tom Moran is a Big Fat Filthy Disgusting Liar to treat the show blurb’s claim of being “hilarious” as not the whole truth.
In this monologue (directed by Davey Kelleher), Moran relates a tale of how he started lying at an early age, often to loved ones. He continued this behaviour up to a turbulent time in his late twenties.
There was some levity early on. As a young child Moran watched the first UK series of Big Brother, and admired the dubious courage of housemates to perform “shameful” acts without any shame. The humour took on a progressively darker hue as a fib told to get a day off school got well out of hand.
We start to see a fault line in Moran’s psyche, as he confesses that he would rather lie, even when consequences could be severe, than have his mother think ill of him.
Across the 70 minutes of the piece, Moran would take us through different permutations of counselling, body-image issues, less-than-ideal relationships with parents, and apparent successes as an actor.
There was the odd time when the chronology of events was confusing. Also, whilst Moran did have pithy explanations of some Irish terms for us, some of the foreign references placed speedbumps in the story’s way.
This “completely true” show exhibits courage in presenting us with an unvarnished account of Moran’s foibles. The self-proclaimed “empathy expert” recounted tales of hiding aspects of his personality so he could manipulate people to feel better about himself. (Have we tapped into something in pop culture here, given Taylor Swift’s recent description of vipers dressed in empath’s clothing?)
After a low point in his life, Moran certainly proceeded toward greater self-awareness, but the work doesn’t substantially return to its initial comedic slant.
Regardless, the monologue is expertly delivered. His movement from the central narrative to peripheral reflections and back again was handled crisply, aided by changes to lighting and sound design.
Even though the show has toured Scotland and Ireland, it still appears that Moran is embarking on a fresh excavation of personal history and the associated emotions.
Tom Moran is a Big Fat Filthy Disgusting Liar
Festival Hub: Trades Hall – Meeting Room, Corner Lygon and Victoria Streets, Carlton
Performance: Saturday 5 October 2024
Information: www.melbournefringe.com.au
Image: Tom Moran – photo by Owen Clarke
Review: Jason Whyte