When James Dowdeswell performed his show Wine at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2007, he received complements for presenting a refreshing and different topic in a humourous manner. Now James is taking things further by presenting an updated version of the show at the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival. James chatted to us about performing for a Wine Crowd rather than a Comedy Crowd.
How did the show end up at the Food & Wine festival?
I asked. They said yes. I was going to bring the show to the comedy festival, but then I thought rather than be one of 330 comedy shows at MICF, why not be the only comedy show at the Food & Wine Festival.
Have you previously performed at events consisting of a non comedy crowd? Were there specific challenges to overcome to get them on side?
Yes. Christmas shows full of Office parties. Performing my wine show to a non-comedy crowd is good fun and means I can take a little more time exploring a story rather than having to hit punchlines all the time.
What kind of crowds did you attract to your Edinburgh run of “Wine”? Were punters offering their expertise (or lack) of wine?
Edinburgh is one of the drinking capitals of the world. In fact one guy even brought me a bottle of whisky, hoping to convert me. Quite a few people stayed around to share their thoughts on wine and have a drink after. It was a lot easier than one of my preview shows. I’d given out free wine, but half the crowd weren’t drinking. When i asked why they revealed they were recovering alcoholics on a rehab team building exercise. One said. “I know how good wine is, that’s how i got into this mess in the first place!”
Being an updated version of “Wine”, are you attempting to change the show to appeal more to a potential audience of Wine Buffs? I noticed that you are no longer “throwing a banana skin under the pretentious world of wine.”
Yes and no. Aussies are generally less pretentious about wine than Brits. Last year I went wine tasting in the Yarra Valley with Mickey D. We were stood next to a guy at a winery, who expertly stuck his snout in the wine, nudged me and pronounced, “Mate, this has got shitloads goin’on!” He was spot on. The previous show was written 2 years ago so there’s another 2 years of drinking experience and adventures including gatecrashing a formal industry wine tasting with a comic friend of mine Damian Clark. We called ourselves Astro Productions – nothing wine related, Astro Boy is Damo’s favourite cartoon character.
Having Janet A McLeod as Producer, has she offered any advice as yet? Are you inclined to take it?
Janet is great. She has helped with everything – booking the venue, pitching to press, and drinking my wine.
The Melbourne Food and Wine Festival presents “James Dowdeswell Sticks His Nose In” at Press Café Wine Bar (97 Brighton Rd, Elwood) on the 19th and 20th of March at 8pm. Tickets are $50 and can be booked on 95377500.
Many thanks to James for his time.