Sammy JAustralia, are you ready to party? Because Sammy J is bringing all his characters, favourite songs and new sketches to the stage next year in one massive variety show.
The comedian, author and self-proclaimed nerd has been entertaining crowds around the globe for years, but TV audiences will know him best from his award-nominated weekly satirical spot on the ABC. His hit sketches have included The Government Coach, National Yoga, and the breakout satire of the 2016 federal election, Playground Politics.
But ultimately, Sammy is most at home on stage. He’s a veteran of 15-years touring from Edinburgh to Montreal, both solo and in his award-winning comedy duo ‘Sammy J & Randy’. Together they won the biggest live comedy award in Australia, The Barry, at the Melbourne Comedy Festival, and later turned that show into the award-winning sitcom, Sammy J & Randy in Rickets Lane, which played internationally on Netflix.
This time round, he’s left Randy at home, and is excited to bring his comedy to a brand-new audience from his burgeoning TV following. For Sammy J, he modestly hopes audiences come to the show ready for the best night of their lives. “It will be the sort of night that is going to make every other night until their death a disappointment in comparison,” he promises. “There’ll be stand-up, songs, sketches and characters from my weekly ABC TV spots. You won’t need to know anything about politics to enjoy it. But if you happen to know the whole constitution by heart, there’ll be plenty for you as well.”
This is Sammy’s first solo tour since 2017’s award-winning Hero Complex, an autobiographical story about a gardener, a schoolboy and a mutual love of the comic book character, The Phantom. That show broke the shackles of the ‘musical comedian’ moniker and Major Party will further show his comedy chops. “I feel like I’ve been chasing different audiences my entire career, and this show is the chance to bring them all together,” he says. “So, whether you’re five-years-old, 15, or 65, this is one party I hope you don’t miss. Actually, maybe not the five-year-olds, get a babysitter for those ones …”
While the youngsters in the audiences may need to stay at home, it was actually Sammy J’s own children that helped bring to life his Playground Politics show in the first place. “ABC asked me to do daily updates during the last election, and wanted to know if I had any ideas,” he says. “I said ‘sure’…. I was lying. So, I asked for 24-hours. During that 24-hours, like most days, I watched Play School with my kids. Then I had the idea of blatantly plagiarizing it, and the rest is short satirical format history.”
When he is not delving deep into the minefield of political drama, Sammy J has been scoring himself ARIA Awards – he has three – and in 2018 released his debut novel, The Long Class Goodnight. As part of his weekly ABC TV shows, he snuck into Malcolm Turnbull’s final press conference, just to eat a chocolate bar, and it’s this attitude to fun, irreverence and smart silliness he will bring to Sammy J’s Major Party.
It’s a show that promises to have it all, harking back to the old school variety shows we love. Sammy J will have you singing along to Playground Politics , getting inspired by Government Coach, and flexing your core beliefs with some National Yoga (audience participation warning). It’s a jam-packed night of song, stand-up and shenanigans, brought to you by the first person in history to have licked every Australian State and Federal Parliamentary building.
Thursday 6th June 2019 | 7.30pm
City Hall, NEWCASTLE NSW
www.newcastle.nsw.gov.au/newcastle-venues/newcastle-city-hall
Friday 7th June 2019 | 7.30pm
Concourse Theatre, WILLOUGHBY NSW
www.theconcourse.com.au/whats-on/
Saturday 8th June 2019 | 7.30pm
The Factory Theatre, MARRICKVILLE NSW
www.factorytheatre.com.au
Saturday 15th June 2019 | 7.30pm
Canberra Theatre Centre, CANBERRA ACT
www.canberratheatrecentre.com.au
Saturday 29th June 2019 | 7.30pm
The Athenaeum, MELBOURNE VIC
www.athenaeumtheatre.com.au
Friday 12th July 2019 | 7.30pm
Royalty Theatre, ADELAIDE SA
www.royaltytheatre.com.au
Saturday 13th July 2019 | 7.30pm
Regal Theatre, PERTH WA
www.regaltheatre.com.au
Saturday 20th July 2019 | 7.30pm
Brisbane Powerhouse, BRISBANE QLD
www.brisbanepowerhouse.org