Seen one Montgomery, seen all his Montcomedies? [by Matt Baker]
Those of you who know Guy Montgomery’s work from Snort will already have an idea of the absurdity of this up-and-coming New Zealand comedian’s style. For those of you who don’t, there’s simply no way of preparing you for his farcical nature. Think of the weirdest joke that ever made you laugh, then times it by ten.
The line between scattered riffing and any sense of planned laughter has been further blurred since Montgomery’s last comedy festival show, resulting in a genuinely flying-by-seat-of-your-pants experience for the audience. The success of this comes from the fact that Montgomery knows where and when to push or pull back when working a bit. The trouble is that, at times, these presumed bits seem completely random and non-integrated to the work as a whole.
There is some sense of completion to the chaos in one of Montgomery’s final sketches, when the odd call back falls into place, but it isn’t taken to its full satisfaction. However, this could simply be part of Montgomery’s evolution as a comedian. Then again, it might not be, and the concern is then that if you’ve seen one of Montgomery’s shows, you’ve seen them all. Montgomery toes and incredibly fine line, but it’s one that fills a gap in the New Zealand comedy scene, there’s simply no one like him. Best to get in now and start riding the wave at this early stage in his career to see where it goes.
Guy Montcomedy plays as part of the NZ International Comedy Festival 2015 at Montecristo until May 10. For details see Comedy Festival.
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