Vanessa Bennett is Bodysnatcher
After a successful season at last year’s Melbourne Fringe Festival, Vanessa Bennett is bringing her show Bodysnatcher to the Comedy Festival. In that show, Vanessa improvised scenes based upon objects provided by the audience. “That was one of the most fun things about doing the Fringe show”, explained Vanessa, “every single night I had no idea what people were going to bring to trigger off the improvised characters. And there were all sorts of things from objects that people had brought along and really put some thought into, to the small bits and pieces grabbed from a handbag or pocket just before the show. And all of them were great to interpret…I had a crash helmet, adrenalin medication, toothbrush, hand knitted socks, tram ticket, grammar usage book, trinkets, and even a condom (thankfully still in its packet). The guy who put that one on the table tried to go anonymous and not claim it, but I smoked him out by the end of the show!”
Before you start digging through the garage for interesting objects for Vanessa, be forewarned that there has been a major change to the format of the show. “The big change this time around is that the show isn’t done as a fully improvised show, inspired by objects. I really loved doing that and in coming up with that format, the character of Rhonda “Bodysnatcher” Bergshaw was born and pretty much took over in a way that only an over-enthusiastic American psychic channeler can. The show this year is more about Rhonda than me as an improviser. It’s all about Rhonda coming out here to share her unique brand of insights (read: dodgy affirmations) with the people of Melbourne. There’s still improvisation in the show with Rhonda and the audience, which is the really fun bit, and many of the characters she channels for people were inspired by ones that came out of the Fringe improvisations.”
In the last incarnation of Bodysnatcher, Vanessa improvised three scenes each show, every one created on the spot. In developing those scenes Vanessa explained that “there are always things you try to be aware of with impro, namely story and some kind of action, but it’s also quite a personal thing just because of the way different people’s minds work. For me, I like to have a real depth and quirkiness to all my characters, so that people feel for them and their stories, as well as laughing at them, but it’s very instinctive, you just start and hopefully a character just takes over. I also like a turn of phrase and a touch of the ridiculous and unexpected, and some would say I enjoy doing a burly bloke a little too much.” With this approach things could have easily got out of control but Vanessa did an impressive job with keeping the scenes to time. “Things just seem[ed] to come to a logical end, or maybe not a logical but hopefully satisfying conclusion. In the last show I did have a clock, but I kept forgetting to look at it, so it wasn’t much help!”
This season will involve a number of characters all played by Vanessa with Rhonda being the main focus of the show.“This time I have mixed it up a bit, so some characters will have more to say than others to keep it dynamic and interesting. Though a part of the show is Rhonda just relating to different people in the audience and once she takes over, I just have to go with it at that point. She’s like a human fortune cookie, not always 100% accurate, but always fun.”
Visit “Bodysnatcher”:http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/season/2007/show/446/ for booking details.