Ever felt too awkward to say ‘no’, and ended up in the most uncomfortable situation? Wondered how you got yourself there in the first place and why you didn’t follow that screaming ‘no’ that got caught in the back of your throat?
Singaporean-Chinese comedian Ting Lim takes you through a journey of all the awkward encounters she found herself in through her new show ‘Well… This Is Awkward’.
In an intimate safe space at Storyville Melbourne, Ting Lim opens up about all the ridiculous situations she has experienced. Through her honest storytelling and dark humour, we get a glimpse of Ting’s life brought up through a traditional Chinese family in Singapore and the cultural adaptations she made by residing in Australia.
This stems off her story of accidentally becoming a plus one for a funeral and the extreme cultural shock of her first white funeral compared to the Chinese ones she is used to back home. Her narrative was so descriptive, at one point I felt like I had watched all this play out in front of me with immense shock and second-degree awkwardness seeping into my veins. A series of small, interlinked situations are unearthed, walking through Ting’s day to day shenanigans and her cringe-worthy and awkward responses.
Ting really hit home with her stories about her family. As someone who was also raised with a traditional Chinese upbringing, her mention of the half love, half trauma, as the perfect balance of Yin and Yang was hilariously relatable. I guess trauma bonding is real. The typical love language was not hugs and words of endearment growing up, but instead continuously feeding you while commenting about your weight as an overfilled bowl of food was handed your way was beyond relatable.
My favourite part of Ting Lim’s show was her example of how she video calls her mum. It made me cackle with laughter as that is exactly how I also talk to my own mother to this day. It was so familiar, I almost thought Ting Lim showed me a screenshot of my own video call with my parents.
The honest and sincere storytelling from Ting Lim is engaging, heartfelt and hilarious. It was a perfect dose of awkwardness where you questioned if it was okay to laugh, but unconsciously did so anyway. Seeing Tim Lim therapeutically unpack felt like catching up with a friend you haven’t seen in a while and hearing all about the outrageous adventures that they’ve been through over a period of time. A perfect combination of endearing awkward.
Sometimes, I wonder if it’s normal to get stuck in a weird place that was brought upon by myself; but after seeing Ting Lim’s show and hearing her super relatable situations, I guess I’m not alone in trying to fend myself out of awkward and laughable settings. Tim Lim’s openness and authenticity makes you want to root for her in her quest for life. I genuinely look forward to hearing more of her adventures the next time she comes round.
Ting Lim’s ‘Well… This Is Awkward’ is currently on at Storyville Melbourne as part of the 2024 Melbourne International Comedy Festival until the 21st of April.
For more information and ticketing, visit:
https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2024/shows/ting-lim-well-this-is-awkward
https://www.tinglim.com
https://www.instagram.com/tinglimcomedy
Photography supplied.