And we’re back! First live show of 2023 after what was one of the most stressful months of my life, and if I do say so myself, we fucking knocked this one out of the park.
All-star line-up, everyone was on form, including me, and a nice packed out room to bring in the new year.
Opening the show we had Blizzard Comedy’s favourite wrestling superstar, Balthazar Dark. Balthazar was just as bonkers as ever, managing to toe the line between genuinely terrifying but also incredibly friendly and endearing. It’s hard to describe what you’re in for if you haven’t seen him before, but what can be guaranteed is that whether or not you know anything about wrestling you will be in stitches before the set is even half way done. Niche jokes and references, engaging ad libs, and an all round comedy spectacle awaits you when Balthazar gets on stage.
After that we had a Blizzard first timer Sam Ayinde, who expertly walks the tightrope of edgy yet inventive joke premises whilst remaining likeable and not exclusionary. A genuine juggernaut of joke writing and telling who can hold his own against seasoned pros easily. Watch out for him, great things to see here.
Following Sam we had another old favourite who hasn’t performed on our stage (virtual or otherwise) since 2021. Roo Stellin has changed a lot since they first did Blizzard, in that they have since come out as transmasc (I promise we won’t do this to every act you love, but I can’t promise it won’t be most of them).
Roo has always been great, but seeing them grace our stage for the first time in nearly 2 whole years, it’s incredible to see just how much they’ve come into their own, continuing to explore really personal and dark ideas in an intelligent and thought-provoking way, as well as just having a few delightfully crass jokes thrown in to keep you on your toes.
Roo has a natural stage presence and delivery that keeps you hooked on every hilarious sentence they utters, and fully encapsulates the kind of act we love to nurture and experience on the way up to success. An icon in the making.
And closing the show we had Jen Ives. Jen is a force to be reckoned with – coming off of one of my favourite Edinburgh shows of 2022. Jen is just as naturally hysterical as ever, being the kind of person who could probably manage to make a Graham Linehan script funny in 2023 if she wanted to.
There’s so much to love about Jen as an act and as a voice. She has a determination in the face of some of the most aggressive and genuinely dangerous critics out there today, she has an authenticity that is gripping to everyone from the moment you first hear her talking. At the core of it all, Jen is just a great fucking laugh, and the perfect company to spend your evening in if you’re after one-of-a-kind great stand-up. Also she has some fucking brilliant pasta based jokes that no one else is even attempting to do right now. You wouldn’t get that on Comedy Unleashed would you?
What a first show back, and next show is already shaping up to be equally as spectacular with Manchester darling Jonathan Mayor, Twitch legend all the way from Singapore Sam See, plus support from Ben Lund-Conlon and Kyle Bedder. Book your tickets here: https://www.outsavvy.com/event/11660/blizzard-comedy-live-featuring-jonathan-mayor
And join us on Twitch.tv/blizzardcomedy to see the stream version of this show on, or up to 14 days after January 16th 2023.
