The Melbourne International Comedy Festival always provides an experience that surprises me. This year, it came at the hands of a new comic, Jin Hao Li.
Originally from Singapore and living in the United Kingdom, Jin Hao Li was a guest at the recent Asian Allstars Gala and in the short 5-minute spot that Jin had, I was instantly impressed. I just had to see his full show. Thankfully, I was able to attend his Monday night show at the Melbourne Town Hall – Lower Town Hall to experience his show in full.
Titled, Swimming In A Submarine, Jin’s style is a marriage of classic standup with a strange and wonderful imagination. His delivery is a mixture of softly spoken dry humour and a livelier persona that creeps through every now and then. Together, it makes Jin’s show unpredictably hilarious.
I was hanging on every word, trying to decipher where these lines of jokes were going to end up at, and almost each time, I was left surprised. Each joke was cleverly and meticulously thought out with the punch line landing every single time. There are even some call back moments throughout the show that whilst simple in nature, are damn funny every time.
Jin also loves to work a crowd, and the crowd (at least at my show) appeared to love giving it back to him too. Jin was seen giving high fives and “Bro, am I right?” handshakes with the front row (I got two within as many minutes). Approaching a single audience member several times during the show to roll off a strange anecdote about lizards, and even a heckle moment that saw Jin leave the stage in an hilarious display of defeat, Jin’s rapport with his audience comes across as naturally funny. Even when caught off guard, Jin’s quick wit made the moments even better.
Jin covers so many topics in his show, each as funny as the next. From reliving the nightmares of his childhood with some unexpected sketches, to the stereotypes of the Yakuza and wanting to join them, the irony of a wooden boardwalk in a forest reserve, to racism and the time he beat the millions of other Hao Lis to become Jin Hao Li’s during his conception that results in some hilarious callbacks during the show. But mixed in with all the funny gags and clever punchlines are some wonderful heartfelt moments.
The highlight of the evening was Jin’s take on male Tinder bios and their insatiable need to hold a fish. Asking the females of the crowd if they like it or not, one attendee exclaimed that it “could literally be anything else, but a fish? Ick!”. Throwing it right back in their faces with a beautiful tale of how the fish is a representation of how his father is finally proud of him. That Father/Son affection is only shared between the two of them via the act of fishing. “A father’s love gives you the ‘Ick’?”. It was surprisingly moving and hilarious at the same time.
I went into this show not knowing what to expect. And even as the show progressed, I wasn’t sure where it was going. At times, I don’t even think Jin knew where it was going, but upon reaching the end, I found that the show is practically perfect. It’s funny, crazy, heartfelt, and then when it is all over, you will leave with wanting to see more. Not because it wasn’t satisfying, but because it is that good.
Jin Hao Li’s Swimming In A Submarine is an eclectic mixture of exciting rollercoaster meets calming carousel. As quickly as Jin Hao Li jumps into the eccentric vibes, he can effortlessly bring it back down to the mellow vibes. Its like mixing Vodka and Red Bull together; they’re opposite in nature but it just works!
With performances up until the 18th of April, there are not many chances left to see this fantastically surprising comic. Jin Hao Li is most definitely worth a look!
For more information and ticketing, visit:
https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/browse-shows/jin-hao-li
https://www.instagram.com/jin.hao.li
Photography supplied.