January: Comedian Of The Month #12, Maeve Higgins
Each Comedian of the Month on MoodyComedy is a comic who has never previously featured on the website. Reasons for selection can include various current projects the comedian is involved with, or perhaps recent appearances on television programmes or podcasts. There is no strict criteria however, as Comedian of the Month simply stands as a collection of recommendations, highlighting interesting and original aspects of certain comedians and their work.
My first Comedian of the Month for the new year is the fantastically funny Irish star of The Alternative Comedy Experience, Maeve Higgins.
Opening with lines like: “I don’t know if you know my parents. Do you know my parents?” Maeve quickly sets the scene for her strange style of conversational comedy. She is one of the most likeable stand up comedians I think I’ve ever known, but she’s no pushover. I have no regrets in saying that this lady is absolutely adorable and very endearing; her material is silly and childlike, often being almost whimsical.
She likes to play with and manipulate the comfort levels of her audiences, often acting as though she’s just a sweet little lady who wants to try a bit of comedy, but by acting so out of her depth, it just shows us that she really isn’t. Her material can often warrant awkward pauses, but she is quick to assure her audiences that she is, in fact, in total control- the awkwardness is a part of the whole package. And in creating this false sense of fear or anxiety, she earns all the more laughter as a relief from the stress once viewers realise that everything is fine.
Presenting her home country of Ireland as some kind of mystical foreign land, Higgins effortlessly slips into an almost surreal form of comedy, with tagged-on lines like: “I can do both of those things at the same time. Simultaneously as they say in my country,” and references things like ‘marmalade season’. And while she performs, she appears to be almost ageless; her delivery can border on deadpan, but she’s also energetic and youthful in equal measure.
Maeve Higgins is a very exciting comedian, and I look forward to seeing what she creates in the future.
Follow Maeve on Twitter and for further information, visit her website.