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Akmal Saleh
Royalty Theatre
Sat 10 March
Season closed
If there's one thing you can just about count on when you see live comedy, whether in a little pub or a big venue, it's hecklers. And even the best comedians can be caught off-guard by someone yelling a barely coherent non sequitur from a darkened audience. Not Akmal Saleh, though. Confronted by a repeat offender with a brash voice, he asked, "So which part of Elizabeth are you from?", drawing a huge laugh and appreciation for the local touch.
Akmal clearly enjoys interacting with the crowd. Playing his persona as alternately aggressive and apologetic, he's able to weave seamlessly between his prepared material - which is hilarious - and observations about random members of the audience. These commentaries can be pretty full on, but so is the rest of the act, and Akmal doesn't spare anyone. The Arab people, of which he is one, are just as fair game as Eskimos, whom Akmal hates because "they never come to my shows."
He admits that a hard part of his job on radio is talking about stories he's uninterested in, chiefly celebrity gossip items, and it shows in the act; this is his weakest material, but it's still better than a lot of stuff you'll hear in stand-up these days.
Akmal is supported by fellow comedian Joel Ozborn, who, on his own, is mildly amusing, but together with the star is a riot. The two manage to make what are, frankly, a bunch of lame prop jokes into a sidesplitting finale to what is a top-notch night of comedy.
Henry Nicholls
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