Review: Josh Thomas - Jiggle Jiggle at The Arts Centre

Review by Greg Gorton

When first choosing what to make this year's MICF show about, Josh Thomas made the mistake of saying his show would be happy, light-hearted, and silly. While the word “whimsy” was never spoken, it was highly implied. Of course, between then and now he discovered that in a tumultuous, anxiety-inducing world, that is a little difficult to do. After all, he is a self-deprecating millennial with anxiety issues, living in a world plagued by doom-scrolling and dark politics. How is he supposed to provide happiness?

Nevertheless, that happiness is found in Jiggle Jiggle, thanks to a few key elements of the show. First, Josh has (kinda) learnt magic. Second, he has some stories that will at least make us happy we weren’t there. And finally, he has a secret weapon - a cameo that, while drawing all the intention from him, would make even the coldest of audience member’s night.

The Fairfax Theatre of the Arts Centre is the perfect venue for this show. It’s intimate enough that we can see just how poorly Josh’s magic skills are, and feel like we are a part of a conversation, while not so stuffy as to feel like we are trapped in a car with someone who will give you their anxiety as if it were contagious. It’s also a venue that can offer lighting and sound design filled with colour and joy, and room for stage work that is quite fun to watch.

The show is a tight hour, and the time flies by. This is partly due to Thomas’ rapid-pace verbal style, but also simply a very well-paced set of bits that flow neatly back and forth, like a dinner guest hogging the limelight than a monologue from a thespian. The content of the show centres almost entirely around personal stories of love, (not too graphic) sex stories, addictions to mobile gaming, and the sort of strange occurrences that occur if you have the wrong friends. 

It’s a delightfully apolitical show from a man who isn’t afraid to get political as long as it is on his terms. And by apolitical, I don’t mean Thomas refused to share his own beliefs, simply that he made it clear that this wasn’t what the show was about. It honestly felt like a breath of fresh air to not have to be depressed by the world outside but also not be expected to pretend the outside world doesn’t exist.

Josh Thomas doesn’t seem to have changed much since his early days, and you might wonder if he has “grown” since “Please Like Me” (over 12 years ago, would you believe it?). This might be in part to the fact he still looks and sounds like a boy in man’s clothes, but also because his shtick of anxious embarrassment and desire hasn’t changed that much. But there is a confidence in this show that says “I’m allowed to be shy” and “Yep, I’m embarrassed, but it is still funny”, and the sort of humble maturity that is often lacking in other comics who have found success. So many I hear and see today try to pretend they are everyman long after the last time they caught public transport; when Thomas talks about Paris, or flying first class, he talks about them as privileges rather than norms. Again, this is rare, and I hope that when I see him in twenty years time there will still be the authenticity he had both twenty years ago and today.

It’s dangerous to underestimate the power of the stage magic in this show. Yes, it is bad. And cheap. So cheap that Thomas admits to buying all the props from Alibaba. There’s power in that, though. The idea that having colour and Life in our lives doesn’t have to be too expensive. Being silly doesn’t cost as much as we think. And being silly is good for us. Then there is the cameo. I refuse to spoil the surprise, though you likely haven’t seen them on stage before. What I can say is that they, too, offer evidence that light and love and laughter doesn’t have to be at the expense of anyone, doesn’t require you to “take a stand”, or even be particularly vulnerable. It is mostly about just opening up yourself to having a laugh, and not judging yourself when you do.

I also want to praise Josh Thomas for a further addition to his show that is, frankly, something we should desire of all. After the show, Thomas made himself available for a short time for audiences to have their own personal magic trick (and photograph) with the comedian for…..wait for it…. A donation to MSF. Now, yes, it is the charity closest to my own heart, but that is partly because it is a charity with no fault. Its health professionals are right now in Sudan and Iran, and it was MSF’s health people who died in Gaza. When it comes to the words “apolitical” and “kindness” there is nowhere better I could point. The line of this addition was surprisingly short and, yes, Thomas is as kind and welcoming as you’d expect.

Jiggle Jiggle is the kind of feel-good stand-up comedy we need, and this more mature Thomas greatly surpasses the already brilliant comedian I have seen before. While it is on early in the night, it is worth rushing out of work for, and gives you a good excuse to grab dinner and then see something else after.

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