Hailed as ‘two of our greatest virtuosos of comedy’, Lano & Woodley are heading our way with their brand-new show ‘Moby Dick’ – their most ambitious show yet.
For anyone looking for the latest unique comedy show with the deepest thought level, the new show from comedy duo Lano and Woodley is for you.
Dubbed ‘Moby Dick’, Lano and Woodley ( the alter egos of Colin Lane and Frank Woodley) are set to bring their next biggest comedy hit to Costa Hall in Geelong this Saturday, May 14, offering an extraordinary performance filled with various set lightings, costumes and musical input to bring the classic tale to a comedic light.
Stay up to date with what’s happening in the art space around the region here.
As you can probably guess, the show takes inspiration from Herman Melville’s classic whale story, Moby Dick. The duo has turned the literary masterpiece into an exciting comedic tale of adventure and doom, leaving the audience questioning what will happen next.
“Moby Dick is just such a grand epic, reasonably famous tale that gives us a great framework and premise to work from,” Lano says.
With their new show, Lano takes an exciting approach to the original story. He creates an atmosphere where the audience and characters all know what is expected to happen and are confronted with the foreshadowing realisation that everything will end.
The concept came to the comedian during the lockdown as he read the original story and thought it would create the perfect framework for a show, rather than just relying on their usual method of improvised comedy to create something humorous.
“It is much easier to come up with a comedy show based on a story rather than just sitting around and just going ‘what’s funny?'”
View this post on Instagram
Despite being a successful comedy duo blending vaudeville and comedy and renowned for their on-stage intimacy, Lano and Woodley still face challenges when it comes to their story ideas and in deciphering what the audience will actually consider funny.
“You have all these ideas and grand ambitions about how you want to do it and then you do trial shows and the audience act as some kind of group director and they just go ‘no, we’re not interested in that’. Or ‘no, we don’t think that’s funny’ or ‘we don’t think that’s plausible’, and you have to make changes based on what their reaction is,” Lano explains.
When asked about his relationship with his other comedic half, Woodley, Lano feels extremely lucky to find someone amazing to work with and whose personality does not clash with his own.
“I think Frank and I both had a very similar sense of humour right from the start,” says the comedian.
“When you’re on stage and you’re just absolutely, supremely confident in what your other half is doing and the audience is having a great time, you just go ‘wow. This is pretty good’. It’s pretty fun.”
The comedic take on Moby Dick portrays more than just the classic whale story. Instead, it is more to do with the relationship between Lano and Woodley. However, as with any professional partnership, Lano is continually challenged by Woodley in some very hilarious ways.
“All the stories that Frank and I do, I try and tell the story, and Frank just tries to sabotage it… but that is what our relationship is,” he explains.
The comedy duo provides good news for anyone looking to take a break from a particular pandemic that has taken over the world. Lano and Woodley’s latest show contains no covid related jokes, and they both want the audience to embrace the comedy the show provides.
“There’s no reference to… covid or vaccinations. I don’t think there’s one joke about that and you don’t have to think too hard either,” Lano says.
The comedian’s favourite part about his performances is to make people laugh and then question themselves for doing so. He wants to provide his audience with a “wacky” and “zany” escape from the issues currently facing our everyday lives.
“I love in some ways that sometimes we do jokes or routines on stage and people piss themselves, and then they groan because they can’t believe that they’ve actually laughed at the joke,” says Lano.
Lano feels so good about this show that he guarantees that audiences will leave the show happy and full of laughter.
“We’re pretty unique in the fact that we give you value for money. Comedy value. Five stars,” he boasts.
So if you are after a comedy show that is destined to tickle even the most stubborn of funny bones, make sure to catch Lano and Woodley’s performance this weekend before they sail away.
If there ever was a year to escape into the innocent imaginations of Lano & Woodley, it’s this one.
Lano & Woodley will bring Moby Dick to Costa Hall on Saturday, May 14 from 7:30 pm. Tickets here.
