The battle tonight between poets and comedians at the Good Times Comedy Club in Ōtautahi Christchurch sees a pumped full house keenly anticipating the start of Face/Off 2024.

The MCs for the evening are Dave Adams (Captain of the Comedians) and Jor Dansaren (Captain of the Poets), both clearly comfortable in their roles and doing a great job of explaining what we are about to see, how a winner will be decided and suggesting we click our fingers to show support for the poets so as not to break their rhythm. I am reminded of the “Woman” poem from So I Married an Axe Murderer with Mike Myers as the only other time I have experienced the poetry clicking. This is going to be fun!

And fun is definitely the vibe. Dave tells the audience to remember that these are real people on stage, and if we want a good night we must give them energy. “This isn’t Netflix,” he says. “They can hear you.”

Good advice Dave, and it is well heeded by the generous audience.

Team Comedy gets the ball rolling with recent Dunedin import, Tama Alexander, who won the 2023 Otago Raw Comedy Quest as well as taking out two awards at the Dunedin Fringe festival last year – Dunedin’s Favourite Comedian and Most Outstanding Emerging Talent. It‘s a strong start for Team Comedy thanks to Tama, whose impressions of people doing impressions of people doing impressions in the style of Harry Potter’s Snape, is gold. Tama is also running the bar and tech desk. Respect.

Next up is poet Erik Kennedy who is originally from New Jersey and now resides in Christchurch. He is the author of ‘Another Beautiful Day Indoors’ (2022) and ‘There’s No Place Like the Internet in Springtime’ (2018), which was shortlisted for best book of poems at the 2019 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards. His poem “All Submarine Movies are Christmas Movies” was delightful. The parallels between being stuck in a submarine with people you may not like or want to be with, and spending Christmas holidays with people you may not like or want to be with, clearly resonates with the audience.

Team Comedy takes the stage now with Charn Williams who shows great confidence. Her set is a bit short and the diversity in the audience may have been why her material doesn’t land as well as it should.  Still, she is applauded and rewarded for her honest and confident performance.

Back to poetry and Lee Fraser takes the mic. I understand that Lee is new to poetry, less than a year.  Her work has appeared in Catalyst, London Grip, Micro Madness and Quick Brown Dog. Her poem “for foodies” as she introduces it, is fabulous. The dilemma of toast – how to cook it, how to eat it and what to put on it – has never seemed so challenging.

There are two more performers before half time – Georgia West Cahill for the comedians and Jeff Cotten for the poets. Both perform admirably but team poetry is well ahead at the break.

Kicking things off at the top of the second half is comedian Matt Threadwell, who impresses with his relaxed and strong delivery of genuinely funny material. His timing is excellent, and he really connects well with the audience, having fun in the process. Is this enough to swing things back in the comedians’ favour??

The penultimate poet is Claudia Jardine who was on the 2024 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards Longlist (Mary and Peter Biggs Award for Poetry), the Ōtautahi Christchurch Poetry Slam winner 2022 and the Arts Four Creative Residency at The Arts Centre Te Matatiki Toi Ora in 2021.

If we think the comedians are in with a chance after Matt’s strong performance, Claudine torpedoes that hope right out of the water. She is hilarious, funnier than some of the comedians. Her strong clear voice, excellent material and deliciously playful delivery of “Double Cab Ute” and “Springs Junction” are real highlights of the evening.

So now it’s the turn of each team captain. First is Dave Adams for the comedians. An ex-Wellingtonian, he’s joined the influx of people heading to Christchurch, and we’re lucky to have him. Self-deprecating is his thing and it works well. Although it starts off all ‘average ordinary guy’-like  – “I’ve done Movember and no one noticed”,  the cheeky anal bleaching story takes us in another direction. Very funny indeed.

So, has the pendulum swung again, back to the comedians?

Last up is Jor Dansaren (Captain of the Poets).  Jor is a very confident poet, with good delivery, rhythm and material. She established and hosts the 6pm Speakeasy at the Austin Club Basement Bar on the last Thursday of every month. Jor’s poetry about being disrespected by men, including receiving unwanted dick pics, is delivered with humanity, feeling and honesty.

The time has come for the audience to choose the winners – the poets or the comedians. Dave has an app that apparently measures decibels; the audience will indicate through making as much noise as we can, who is victorious.  

And the winners are…….the poets!

Magnanimous in defeat, the last words of the evening are from Dave Adams.

“Poets can be funny but comedians can’t be poets.”

Great job everyone; bring on Face/Off 2025.

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