When the chance to review Eli Matthewson’s show came up, I swooped. Among the familiar faces of Kiwi comedy, he is a firm fave in our household. The fun part about seeing comics from the telly live is, they don’t have to self-censor. And knowing how close to the edge Eli takes his humour, I am very keen to hear what he does when unleashed.

The Fringe Bar is absolutely packed for the early 6.30 show. We get seats at the back behind a very affectionate gay couple who thankfully keep their kissing to a minimum as my view of the stage is, er, straight between their heads. If you will excuse the expression.

Eli (I’m calling him Eli, not Matthewson, like a private school rollcall) is hilarious. He hits the stage with no warmup act, and has every member of the audience on side from the beginning. Sure enough, those ‘not safe for TV’ subjects get well and truly prodded.

The show’s name, Night Terror, refers to a night when a combination of overly active security cameras, jetlag, a visiting friend and an ongoing feud about who sleeps on which side of the bed culminate in four seconds of endlessly milkable comedy gold. It takes the whole show to get through the story, with many side quests along the way, but there isn’t one person in that bar who doesn’t cheer when asked if they’ve ever feuded over sides of the bed. That’s a relationship universal, equal even to toothpaste tube squeezing habits.

His crowd interaction, the punchlines that whip back around like a tossed ponytail to double the humour, and his willingness to talk about things that people don’t usually talk about, all make Eli Matthewson an absolute comedy gem. And he does it all without ever punching down, without throwing himself under a bus, or indeed pillorying anyone but the most deserving.

Seeing such a comedy star in the intimate space of the Fringe Bar is a rare delight, and this show is just the thing to beat the ‘WTF is happening in Wellington?!’ blues.

Copyright © in the review belongs to the reviewer

It was a treat to see the Loft space at Q theatre almost full for this Comedy Festival Show especially at 9:30pm on a school night.

A very diverse audience with me being 73 years young, the oldest by a couple of decades and this age difference will show in my review.

Entering to a huge cheer and applause, Eli was certainly in his element.

We were taken on an amusing ramble through his life which the very willing to laugh audience certainly lapped up.

His time in television performance on a gay cruise liner, his slight obsession with cults, the marvel film universe, and the all-time couple dilemma about who sleeps on the door side of the bed all charmed me but didn’t make me laugh out loud.

He obviously enjoys audience participation and manages and controls it very well.

The title of the show ‘Night Terror’ refers to a very funny sequence about his partner trying to strangle him one night when he thought Eli was a burglar. Yes, most burglars creep into bed and snuggle up to you don’t they. Catch the show for the funny sequence leading up to this.

What made me giggle all the way home is that David Seymour is his emergency contact. Lucky Eli!

If not always laughing, I still admired his comic ability, but I do think that he needs to work on delivery pace and is too quick at times and he needs to work on his enunciation. A lot of his jokes escaped me because of that.

This is my review. Eli has won comedy awards and has a large fan base judging on last night’s audience, so do go and see and make your own mind up.

I really like the guy and I admire what he is doing but would like a more definite content and a director to pace and edit.

Copyright © in the review belongs to the reviewer