Set Sail for Adventure is Jack Druce’s debut comedy festival show. In past years he has appeared in the festival as a finalist in RAW (2007) and as a member of the Comedy Zone (2008). At only eighteen years old, this show is an ambitious undertaking for this young comedian.
Set Sail for Adventure is loosely centred around the broader idea of ‘adventure’, with Jack drawing inspiration from blockbuster film promo’s for the title. Jack is essentially an observational comedian and his subject matter often covers much trodden ground such as David Kosch, Snakes on a Plane and the Australian tourism advertisments. He also tells some personal stories including one about a strange meeting with a cow in India and one about inadvertantly burning the Koran. These stories bring a nice touch to the show, but fail to really deliver on the laughs.
Jack adheres to the conventions of comedy; making frequent diversions from the main narrative; using word play; verbalising the logical extentions of ideas; but the lack of originality and the slightly laboured delivery are letting Jack down at the moment. Jack’s material suffers frequently due to the delivery. At many points during the show I felt that he was just using too many words. Jack would benefit from a regular regime of room time, tightening and expanding his ideas, as well as looking at comedians like Jimmy Carr or Tim Vine, who have a great command of word economy.
Criticisms aside, Jack is making all the right movements and this show is structured in such a way that it bears all the trademarks of a stand up show. And the audience on the night did chortle along amiably to much of Jack’s material. At the moment though, he doesn’t have the confidence of delivery or the editorial prowess over his material to carry a full length festival show.
For more info and booking details go to Jack Druce – Set Sail for Adventure