It’s difficult to measure a comedian’s success by audience reaction alone, particularly in Estonia — and the Tallinn Fringe preview of The Gong Show, a global format that has finally made its way to an Estonian English-language stage, was no exception. The preview show was hosted by the always capable, ever-incredible Ana Falcon, who will also host the show’s English-language slot on 10 September at Heldeke!.
The format: eight comedians attempt to keep the crowd engaged for five minutes each, without running afoul of the tastes of three randomly-appointed, flag-wielding judges selected from the audience. Those who survive five minutes without getting voted down are subjected to feedback from a panel of two guest judges, who then determine the winner. The host decides which audience members get to act as flaggers, switching halfway through the show. Falcon’s comfort on stage and interacting with reticent audiences was evident, as she kept the energy up between sets regardless of how long the featured comedian lasted.
For the preview, I would argue the flaggers were perhaps not ruthless enough. The audience visibly suffered through some sets, but the flaggers seemed hesitant to hurt feelings. That said, it takes a steely-nerved comic to face what can be best described as “approving silence”. Reaching the punchline without wilting is formidable enough, but to go further and incorporate crowd work requires deft instincts, like those of Joshua Perkins, the night’s ultimate winner. His occasional openings to the audience depended on the reliable absence of response, to hilarious effect.
On the whole, the line-up represented an excellent blend of local and visiting talent, with jokes ranging from cringe (terrorism puns that one judge pointed out could have just as easily been told in the 80s) to surprisingly thought-provoking (though I may be the only person still thinking about spite-eating pork because pigs have better orgasms than us).
Dating humor and genital jokes reflected the age range of the comics, and more than one comedian was caught out with less than five minutes of material when the audience failed to laugh out loud to fill in the space between jokes. Those with a strong physical presence, whether through their use of the stage or the style of their outfits, tended to last longest, though the loudest laughs were earned from jokes that were surprising, rather than merely funny.
In the end, five comedians remained standing for the full five minutes, making it to the final round, where the guest judges — local Aleksander Eeri and Australian Thao Thanh Cao — then named the affable Welshman Perkins the winner. The Gong Show in English provides a satisfying hour of entertaining variety for all tastes — and if you’re not easily impressed, please, take the flag!
The Gong Show has two performances, one in English and one in Estonian, on 10 September at Heldeke!. Check out the full program of 2024 Tallinn Fringe events, running from 18 August to 18 September at venues around Tallinn.
Author: Laurie
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