Q&A with Arj Barker
Australia’s favourite American comedian is bringing his latest show Organic, brimming with free-range hilarity, to Darwin audiences this month. Off The Leash caught up with Barker ahead of his visit.
This your 10th show down under. How would you compare your first tour to your most recent one?
Well I’d like to think I've gotten a lot better at comedy since those days, but I'll leave that up to the audience to decide. Touring is easier these days. I know what to expect when I return to town for the 10th time. So for instance, I know Darwin audiences are awesome, and that relieves some stress even before I get there!
Did you come to Darwin with any expectations, and did it live up to them?
I've always heard there’s a lot of UFO sightings there. I've yet to see one, but otherwise it's never disappointed. Once, we drove out to a National Park, went for a swim and had to go under a tonne of spider webs to get out to a lake. They were only inches above our faces, but luckily none of them attacked. On the way home we nearly got caught in a flash flood after a massive rainstorm hit suddenly. It was an awesome day. I still want to see a UFO though.
Darwin’s got a healthy crop of young comedians on the rise. As someone who’s performed since the age of 16, what advice have you got for aspiring professional joke tellers?
Get out there and do it. You only get better by experience, so you need to get onstage as much as possible. If you feel there’s a shortage of stage time, start your own weekly comedy showcase in a very small venue like a cafe or a bookstore. Even a small audience will help you develop as a comedian.
Sat 21 Oct | 8pm | Darwin Entertainment Centre | $49.90 | $46.90 Group 10+
