I had no idea what to expect from Rhys Darby as a stand-up comedian during the Perth Comedy Festival at the Regal Theatre. Rhys is a New Zealand legend (as the title of his show says) who now lives in Los Angeles as he is a sought-after actor and voice artist.
I did know the show had something to do with AI (Artificial Intelligence) and robots. What I didn’t know was how clever Rhys was at creating a hilarious story where he is physically moving around the stage, acting all the parts and making all the sound effects.
At one stage, Rhys giggled as he “realised how stupid this story is”. And yes, it is, but it is hilariously funny. His sound effects and actions are slapstick and energetic. I lost count of how many characters and voices he created. Rhys’ Roomba robot vacuum cleaner was both touching in a weird and hilarious way. His idea that every household will have its own human size robot that nobody can afford is absolutely priceless. Rhys’ incredible voice work and actions really brings his robot characters to life with fun and warmth.
Being able to tell such a story on an empty stage with no costumes is amazing. The only thing on the stage was a beat box machine where he puts together an amazing array of sounds into beat box music.
There is the obligatory Australia New Zealand rivalry in sport. Different themes and characters were woven through the whole story. And as silly as the story is, it does have a message in it about creativity, imagination, the human experience and Artificial Intelligence.
For over an hour, I was thoroughly entertained by Rhys’ energetic performance on stage. His ability to tell an outrageous story about a scary subject utilising great humour, satire, slapstick and considerable acting ability blows the mind. There’s no doubt I would come back for a repeat performance