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Ivo Graham

Interview: Ivo Graham at Soho Theatre

September 25, 2018 by Becca Moody Leave a Comment
Ivo Graham is bringing his new show Motion Sickness to the Soho Theatre from the 1st to 13th of October. In anticipation for this fortnight of fun, MoodyComedy has been picking Ivo’s brains about the emotional core of this new show, and the difficulties he has experienced whilst performing it.

How was your show Motion Sickness received at the Edinburgh Festival this year?

Ivo Graham: Motion Sickness

30% returning customers revelling in spending another hour with a comedian they always enjoy.

20% returning customers broadly appreciating the well-told stories but perhaps lamenting the lack of interactive quiz/Weakest Link video from 2017.

10% new people thinking “god, this guy can turn a phrase”.

10% new people thinking “god, this guy’s a bit pretentious”.

10% family and friends wondering how long they have to keep coming to this shit.

10% too drunk / hot / in need of a wee to concentrate on what was happening.

10% empty seats.

What issues does your latest show concern? Which aspects (if any) have been challenging?

The latest show is about commitment and, more specifically, parenthood (the best answer on the board in the Family Fortunes category “commitments”: the worst on Pointless). It was challenging to write because it forced me to decide which of my own insecurities on the subject I felt comfortable sharing with an audience of mostly (see above) strangers. It was challenging to perform because by Edinburgh I’d learnt I was going to be a parent, rendering the central question of “am I ready to take this next step” frustratingly/hilariously inappropriate.

Admin-wise, I then had to decide whether to sit on this news or change the show: I decided the former, only for a couple of rather ambiguously-worded reviews leading to family members getting in touch to ask why I was doing comedy about news they hadn’t even been told about yet. Even now, a few weeks on, we’ve eschewed the obligatory Facebook ultrasound post, preferring to tell friends as and when we see them, so I’ve now got to make a whole lot more decisions as to how I present the information at the Soho. People might even find out having stumbled across this e-interview! A Moody Exclusive!

None of this is to suggest, by the way, that my life updates are of any Great Import beyond my various nearest and dearest, or that the difficulties described above hold a candle to any of the infinitely greater challenges being faced by people around the world. Fundamentally, my girlfriend and I (out of wedlock ahoy!) have had some great news, and being able to do stand-up about this sort of thing is always a Great LarkTM. But I can only respond to the questions as they’re asked (/copy-pasted) to me, and there’s no denying that this year’s issues and their representation have been more of a challenge than previous years’. So there you go.

How has your comedy changed over the past two years?

It’s got more commitment-based (see above). To quote a friend, “instead of talking about how you don’t get off with girls (2009 to 2016), you’re now talking about how you can’t get off with girls (2016 til death/divorce).

How would you describe Ivo Graham The Comedian in three words?

Surpassing expectations.

Why should people come to your Soho Theatre run?

Because the show is charming, relatable, articulate, and my god I’ve suddenly got rather a lot riding on this.

BOOK TICKETS FOR IVO GRAHAM: ‘MOTION SICKNESS’ AT THE SOHO THEATRE

Posted in: Comedians, Interviews Tagged: Ivo Graham, Motion Sickness, Soho Theatre

Review: Bramall Comedy Night Wayne Deakin, Ivo Graham & Andrew Ryan

May 25, 2016 by Becca Moody Leave a Comment
ivo_graham_400

Ivo Graham

The latest comedy night at the Bramall at the University of Birmingham sees two returning acts to the stage, compèred Australian stand up Wayne Deakin. Deakin’s enthusiastic demeanour allows him to win over a crowd within the first couple of minutes, even a particularly quiet, low-energy gathering it seems. He flits around the room, asking surprisingly interesting off-the-mark questions to audience members about their jobs and relationships. Deakin is able to effortlessly create an atmosphere of familiarity and goodwill, summoning an energy from apparently nowhere which enables him to break through any starchy feeling that a compère may be faced with.

Next, Ivo Graham ambles on stage, announcing that there is a “nervous energy in the room,” of which he seems to feed off. Graham is apologetically middle class, appearing rather defeatist in his outlook at times, perhaps due to an apparent concern for the way others might perceive him. Immediately adopting a ‘loser’ status, it seems that this comic wishes to be likeable but also slightly enjoys the alienation that comes with playing up to his Eton College upbringing. Ivo proves himself to be a very capable and efficient storyteller, incorporating a sinister element to his delivery that may be caused, in part, by the inevitable tension caused by confiding in an audience about his schooling.

The final performer of the evening is Andrew Ryan. Charming and bright-eyed; eager to entertain and unafraid of sharing more intimate details about his life in front of a live audience. His anecdotes are confident and consistent, his delivery assured, and even relatively untested material seems to have legs. It appears that this gig provides particular benefits for the structuring of Ryan’s narratives, with the comic feeding off his own energy to propel him in all sorts of directions, providing plenty of room to develop these for his latest Edinburgh show.

BRAMALL COMEDY NIGHTS

Posted in: Comedians, Live Comedy, Reviews Tagged: Andrew Ryan, British Comedy, Comedy, Ivo Graham, Live Comedy, wayne deakin

Review: Bramall Comedy Night, Ivo Graham, Holly Walsh & Nathan Caton

January 20, 2015 by Becca Moody Leave a Comment

Last Thursday I visited Bramall Hall at the University of Birmingham for the third instalment of their fantastic comedy night. It was great to see a very busy venue this time, as opposed to the relatively small numbers I had seen in previous months, perhaps due to the fact the names on the bill seem to get bigger each month.

Ivo Graham was the night’s compere and showed an impressive ability to build a set around the answers of the few people he questioned, whilst remaining open to the audience as a whole. Only a small portion of what was said was obviously material and Graham seemed to derive most of his laughs from impulsive remarks as his energy bounced of the audience. With a love for Mario Kart, Ivo Graham is a wonderfully endearing loser (like the majority of us deep down) and was able to laugh at himself without it seeming constructed or forced.

First up was Holly Walsh, who I’ve watched for years on numerous television shows, particularly panel shows like Never Mind The Buzzcocks and Mock The Week, but more recently on Alan Davies: As Yet Untitled. Holly brings a lovely enthusiasm to a room and has such a delightfully positive vibe about her, and as she pointed out, she sounds ridiculously sweet when she swears, so it doesn’t have the desired effect. Introducing herself as “Holly. Or if my parents are telling me off, Holiver,” it was great to finally see this funny woman in person.

Nathan Caton

Nathan Caton

Nathan Caton was a name and face that I knew, but I hadn’t seen that much of his stand up as I’d only ever seen him on shows like Mock The Week and Good News. Caton’s personality on stage is brilliant; he is cool and relaxed, with material spanning family, politics and race, amongst others. His impressions of his grandmother got the audience laughing the most, and were my favourite part of the night, as well as his newfound fear of white women in dark alleyways.

This comedy night just keeps getting better and better, and I truly can’t wait for next month (check the line up to see why).

BRAMALL COMEDY NIGHT: DECEMBER 2014

Posted in: Comedians, Live Comedy, Reviews Tagged: Comedy, Holly Walsh, Ivo Graham, Live Comedy, Nathan Caton

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