Greetings friends. We are all interested in the future. It is important to every one of us, for that is where you and I will spend the rest of our lives! What mysterious mysteries will the future hold? Will there be love or innocence in the future? More importantly, will there be comedy!?
In the year 2027, a meteor strikes the earth wiping out all living comedians, well that is all but one. 50 years later in the year 2077 a team of Arctic explorers set out to find the lone survivor, the man they call “Subject Zero”. Led by the brilliant Doctor Rosewick, the team find their target, 21st century comedian Con Coutis, frozen in a block of ice. Con is now, quite literally through the process of sheer elimination “THE FUNNIEST COMEDIAN ON EARTH!”. But there’s no time to spare! The world has grown miserable and with aide of a computer simulated comedy show, a thawed out Con must now put on the performance of his life!
“Absolutely bonkers” is the simplest way I’d describe a show by Con Coutis. Some comedians simply tell jokes, some sing, some dance, and some go on mind bending adventure thrill rides across time and space. Coutis‘ innovative unconventional comedic style allows him to cross boundaries you never would have thought possible, with an act which starts simply as a man on a barren stage telling gags about his job at Luna Park. But by the end of the hour, you’re experiencing an 80s cyberpunk surround sound experience to the theme of “Far From Over” by Frank Stallone (and I goddamn LOVE that song)!
Last year I caught Con‘s previous show, the Golden Gibbo-nominated ‘Con vs Con vs Con’. Something I described as “Die Hard meets Being John Malkovich” for all the glorious insanity that it conjures up. For CON 2077, Coutis fully explores his space, turning not just the stage but the entire room into his sandbox as he runs back and forward interacting with everything from the audience to the light switches in the process.
But the real standout is Coutis‘ knack for pantomime which is enhanced by the show’s stunning lighting and sound design. Using an elaborate sound set up, Con takes us on an epic story using the theatre of the mind. We start off slow, not too different from any other stand up set. But soon, Con is talking in palindromes, his mic repeating everything he says in reverse. Then one of his puppet hands is using an invisible defibrillator on his other hand. Con is on a race from one side of the room to the other to answer a phone before it’s too late! Things don’t seem real… almost like we are in a Matrix-like simulation ourselves!
Like I said, absolutely bonkers and I loved it. Con Coutis‘ brilliance as a performer is that his unique brand of physical comedy is so perfectly choreographed. From sound effects, emotive lighting, fight scenes, audience participation and call backs an hour later to things he made up on the spot. Yet the man is so laid back and his demeanour so chill, that the audience want to go on this make-believe fantasy journey with him.
There were a few gaffs here and there where an audio cue didn’t play correctly or a voice over recording gave out the wrong date (“Saturday night” when it was Sunday). But everyone including Con had a laugh at this and none of it took away from just how much fun the whole audience was having!
Con Coutis is one talented performer to keep an eye on, superbly blessed with an infectious energy and quick timing that would serve any comedian well. But the cherry on top is that he is using these skills to bring us something refreshing and completely out of the box. Con Coutis is breaking the mould of what one expects from a comedy show while being so damn hilarious at the same time.
Con Coutis’ CON 2077 is currently playing at Malthouse Theatre as part of the 2024 Melbourne International Comedy Festival until 7th of April.
For tickets, please visit: https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2024/shows/con-2077