Kicking things off with what can only be described as a PTSD flashback to primary school assembly, standing stiffy and reciting the national anthem… but this isn’t your average anthem. This is Hot Department’s anthem. Chaotic, cult-like and absolutely cooked. National pride never felt so unhinged.
The audience was filled mostly with Hot Department virgins, all about to get hooked on the most dangerous drug of the century: depraved humour. There’s no turning back once you’ve had a taste of Hot Department. It’s too late! Your brain chemistry has been permanently altered. Honor Wolff and Patrick Durnan Silva energetically delivered a sketch comedy that’s high octane, unapologetically crazy and completely berserk in the best way. These two creative minds blend up an hour of laughter that will leave you in stitches.
Hot Department with its high-octane, off-the-rails, and somehow still deep content in its twisted relatability had me laughing so hard, I was in tears. It’s quirky, it’s dark, it’s hilarious. It was like watching everyday activities get dragged through a chaotic blender of absurdity and depravity. You’ll laugh, you’ll squirm, and you’ll wonder what the hell just happened.
Honor Wolff and Patrick Durnan Silva’s took some of the most mundane moments and twisted them into pure, lunatic brilliance. With audience-fuelled chaos (it gets a bit wet) and the magnetic chemistry that the comedic pair create onstage, every segment of their sketch somehow teeters between the bizarre and the weirdly relatable. Road trips with a serial killer? Hot. Royal acquaintances that feel a little too familiar? Inbred. It’s a sketch comedy at its most chaotic and it wouldn’t be Hot Department show if we had it any other way.
The improv segment in Hot Department is a beautiful mess that thrived entirely on the chaos that the audience throws at them. The more unhinged the suggestions, the more gloriously deranged the outcome. So, if you’re craving peak madness, don’t hold back. What’s hotter than an impromptu performance featuring cheese, Jesus, tariffs and dad? Honestly, nothing. With chaos that the audience can get behind, each show birthing its own flavour of unhinged, repetitive attendance is worthwhile, but not essential. Watching the two self-proclaimed failed actors bounce off each other with instant banter and absurd chemistry is exactly what makes Hot Department so irresistibly fun. It’s the kind of failure you’ll want front-row seats for. And if you’re one for crowd participation, you’ll probably want those front-row seats. Don’t worry, it’s all consensual.
Diving headfirst into the final leg of their sketch, Hot Department uncovers the dirty little kinks we pretend not to have. Hot stepmum with a leaky tap? Check. Suspiciously store-bought dinner item? Check. An unexpected pizza/handyman who she definitely not call for? Check. Congratulation, we’ve officially unlocked a bizarre subcategory of porn!
But underneath all this chaos and kink is the idea of acceptance (I’d assume so). When you peel back those layers of absurdity, we’re only being taught a message about owning who you are. To be comfortable in your own skin takes guts, and embracing your individual identity is the real empowerment. With lots of nips on display, it’s a bold stance in confidence. Extra-terrestrial being or just a misunderstood hot stepmum? Doesn’t matter, blame the FBI. They’ve been onto her since that tap startled leaking.
Honor Wolff and Patrick Durnan Silva the twisted geniuses behind Hot Department, served up a brand of comedy that’s delightfully deranged and completely addictive. It’s not for the faint-hearted or the prudish, but if you’re down for a chaotically damn good time wrapped in absurdity, nudity and emotional whiplash, this is the mixed-medium comedy show that’s not to be missed. Confusing? No. Diabolical? Absolutely. Iconic? Without a question.
Hot Department are icons in the world of unhinged comedy. If deranged humour is your love language, consider this your holy grail. Hot Department is currently part of the 2025 Melbourne International Comedy Festival and playing at Malthouse Theatre’s Beckett Theatre until April 20.
For more information and ticketing, visit:
https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/browse-shows/hot-department
https://www.malthousetheatre.com.au/whats-on/comedy-festival-2025/hot-department
https://www.instagram.com/hotdepartment
Photography supplied.