Justin Hamilton sings its’ praises at every opportunity. Andy Muirhead heard favorable things about it from photographer extraordinaire, Alan “Wombat” Moyle. Tommy Dassalo informed Alison Bice of a kick arse room in St Kilda. What does Janet A McLeod, promoter of Cooper’s Local Laughs, make of all this attention? “I feel humble. I feel proud…I’m just damned happy to create a conduit whereby audiences get to see inventive, intelligent comedy and comedians get to perform to a funky, savvy crowd.”
In June of 2003, a weekly night of comedy began at the cosy little bar known as The St Kilda Local. Three years later, the room is still going strong. Most of Melbourne’s comedy fraternity, as well as many interstate and overseas visitors, have graced it’s stage on Monday nights. Janet started Local Laughs after she had “been doing Sunday night trivia at The Local for several months, hamming it up and gagging around as per usual. The ‘being funny’ thing inspired the (then) manager and he asked if I knew anyone who could put on a comedy night. Thankfully, I suggested me.”
When Local Laughs began, Janet was still doing a Tuesday comedy night at Vibe on Smith Street. In comparison to Vibe, which featured performances by established names, Janet wanted Local Laughs to “put more emphasis on emerging talent…[it also] had to require one hell of a lot less grooming. No more time-sapping computer projections, late-night poster runs and inactive venue owners.” When Comedy @ Vibe ended in the December of 2003, Janet put all of her comedy energy into The Local.
A number of regular audience members from Janet’s previous rooms have taken up residence on The Local’s couches. One such punter Ian Nicholls explained that “I’ve found that Janet’s comedic sensibilities mostly align with mine; I enjoy seeing comedy more in Janet’s rooms than in the other rooms I’ve tried. I’ve realised that sex/dick/poo jokes are where many comedians start out, but I’m so over that. Janet tends not to book comedians whose prime material hasn’t moved on from that. I also applaud the smoke-free zone near the stage, which as far as I know, few other rooms provide.”
Local Laughs has garnered a reputation as a quality night amongst not only punters, but many comedians as well. On any given Monday night, comedians can be seen checking out the show when they don’t have a gig elsewhere. When the comedians have their first gig there, they usually discover that all that they have heard is true. On his occasional visits to Melbourne, Andy Muirhead found that The Local had a great atmosphere and a very forgiving audience when you want to try out some new stuff. Alison Bice described it as having a “very relaxed vibe. One of the only rooms in Melbourne where you can feel the audience wanting you to do well. It’s a great room for new kids to do their first spots…The Local has a lot of regulars who come in, so its kind of like they watch your character grow up on stage.”
The Local Laughs formula has remained essentially the same over the years, however there has been a refinement in Janet’s philosophy of booking acts. She explains that “I used to have more of an open booking policy but I just ended up being frustrated by the lack of spots that I had left to give to the performers that I was really interested in. I distinctly remember one day looking in my diary to see who I had booked for the following week, groaning at the prospect of a couple of them and thinking: ‘Hang on, I shouldn’t be feeling like this. I bet I’m not the only one groaning either.’ I wasn’t. I don’t argue with my gut instinct as much anymore.”
One semi regular feature of the Local’s calendar is the all female line ups. This goes beyond Janet’s emphasis of trying to “ensure a more realistic gender balance than at other comedy nights.” Alison has taken part in several of these events and remarked that “sometimes it is fun to get the girls together and have a ladies night of comedy. I think these nights are important for women performers because you can build alliances with them. Without sounding too much like a Spice Girl, sometimes being female in a male dominated industry can be tough, so it’s important to have your sisters on side!”
The Local has had its’ share of memorable moments. Ian recalled “the brilliant clash of personalities when Richard McKenzie shared his MC role with Andrew McClelland. Every moment that they shared the stage was excellent, and it made that night the best I’ve been to. There were strange moments too, like when Justin Heazlewood played Yahtzee on stage, as part of his set.” Janet had trouble pinpointing a special memory (“And I blame the bar staff for that.”) as did Alison (“Usually funny stories in comedy come from drunken hecklers being in the audience. But you don’t get that often at the Local.”).
Prompted for a secret formula for others who want to try and match the longevity of Local Laughs, Janet offered the following: “Always book lineups that you – yourself – look forward to seeing. That way you will always want to keep it going. I love watching performers develop -it’s like my own little reality series.”
Local Laughs’ 3rd Birthday celebrations take part on Monday 19th of June. A huge line up is planned with Andrew McClelland as MC, Richard and Adam McKenzie, Toby Sullivan, Penny Tangey, Bryan Roberts, Elbow Skin and Harley Breen. The week after that, The Local plows on into it’s 4th year. Check out the gig guide or point your browser to the website for The Local for more information.
Thank you to Janet A McLeod, Andy Muirhead, Alison Bice and Ian Nicholls for their assistance.