Jess Maguire is not a comedian, she keeps reminding us. She’s been a lot of things – writer, presenter, trivia host, wedding DJ and removalist. But now, after years of trying her hand at all manner of jobs, she’s reinventing herself yet again. This is her first stand-up comedy show. And she’s a natural.
So It’s
Come To This is a
breezy, meandering hour of stories that focuses on Jess’ passion for radio and
her bumpy history of trying to stay employed in that medium. A couple of years
ago she got a radio gig in country NSW, but now she’s looking to return to
Melbourne – and the best way to get a job on the radio in the big city is to be
a comedian or an ex-AFL player. It might be too late for the latter.
I’ve known
Jess for years, mostly from being funny on social media or seeing her do tech
for a show at Fringe. During lockdowns she hosted Zoom trivia and once we were
allowed out again, a group of us regularly frequented her trivia gig at the
Workers Club in Fitzroy. When I found out she was doing her first comedy show,
I was surprised. With her quick wit and her penchant for entertaining a crowd,
I thought she would have done standup before.
She digs
through her CV for laughs, but she also tells ghost stories and gets everyone
up-to-date on her love life – when she first moved to Melbourne she was, um, heterosexual.
Now she’s married and her wife is her publicist. A match made in Dubbo!
So It’s
Come To This is
hilarious, even if you wander into her show having never heard of her. The
night I went, there were two couples whose weddings she’d DJ’d and a few of her
trivia faithful. She’s so entertaining in everything she does, you’ll follow
her from trivia to weddings to her new standup gig and laugh all the way.
- Keith Gow, Theatre First
Note: this was technically a preview, but Jess said I could review it if I had fun!
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