Narc. Magazine Online
Reliably informed
Jacob Easton enjoys a beautiful exhibition of storytelling from the award-winning comedian
Image by Matt Stronge
Ivo Graham arrived at Newcastle’s Northern Stage for one night only to play on a simple prompt – “ten things I shall never throw away”. As jumping off points go, it felt ripe for comedy, particularly when there’s an award-winning comedian with prime-time TV appearances under his belt on stage.
But far from hazing his audience with a ludicrous list of things and all manner of fictitious tales behind them, Graham shared the story of his life, from adolescence up to the present day, warts and all. It was a beautiful exhibition of storytelling, with each item, present on the night, prompting a story into his life.
Told with humility and sharp wit, Graham led us on a journey that he’d no doubt found harder to explore in the laugh-a-minute world of stand-up comedy. Here he found his medium to not only share himself, but to share with an audience the subtlety of humour to be found in even the most emotional of his life events, such as the note left by his late Grandma (i.e. ‘Babuska’), or storytime with his co-parented daughter. It was refreshingly honest and felt pertinent for everyone in attendance.
That’s not to say that it was all heartache, as like all great storytellers, he weaved his tales into an open-ended theme, perhaps optimism to some, awareness for others, but whatever it was, no one will be throwing it away any time soon.
