Judith Lucy & Denise Scott Still Here (Arts Centre Melbourne) – theatre review
COVID-19 has provided plenty of rich fodder for comedians Judith Lucy and Denise Scott. They take to the stage in presumably faux fur as is befitting two “living legends”, after a video montage announcing their arrival. Post exchanging some pleasantries and put downs with a few audience members, they turn the past two years into Comedy Central.
They give of themselves and their experiences in that time, telling tall tales but true – exaggeration being the name of the game … and the laughs just keep on coming. Their friendship and Scott’s marriage is put to the test. They elucidate on what it was like becoming hirsute. Alcohol consumption also gets a look in, as does journaling. There’s a skit involving crocheting and being physical … to a point. Sex and genitalia are never far from their minds.
The ABC’s Dr Norman Swan and Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton, two “sex symbols” arising from the pandemic, emerge as “show and tell” items. And then Denise Scott decides to relay all about her husband of 41 years’ colonoscopy … or more precisely, the lead up to it. Judith Lucy reveals she recently had COVID and talks about not wanting to die in her hometown of Adelaide. Scott reflects on her time on Dancing with the Stars, while Lucy has a line which follows her revelation that she voiced a koala in an animated feature. A much-loved special guest puts in a video appearance before the duo dons sequinned tails and sings us to a conclusion.
There is a lot of love in the room for this pair of stalwarts. They are down to Earth and good at weaving stories … and it is those anecdotes that make the show what it is. Isolation may not have been a lot of laughs when we were going through it, but Lucy and Scott have mined it and come up trumps. They converse with one another and have their monologues, always remaining relatable. The everyday, the mundane and the contemporary provide for plenty to tickle the funny bone. The 70-minutes the performance ran for passed quickly, a sure sign I was enjoying myself. Judith Lucy & Denise Scott Still Here is on at the Playhouse, Arts Centre Melbourne, until 24th April, 2022.
Alex First
Other reviews you might enjoy:
- Happy Days (MTC) – theatre review
- Black Santa (Fad Gallery) – stand-up comedy review
- 9 to 5: The Musical (Arts Centre Melbourne) – theatre review
Alex First is a Melbourne based journalist and communications specialist. He contributes to The Blurb on film and theatre.