Rusciano hits comedy target
COMEDY
Em Rusciano: The Motherload
4 stars
Heath Ledger Theatre
Review: Jacqui Bahr
Loud-mouthed funny femme Em Rusciano certainly knows her audience.
The Australian Idol contestant turned 92.9 radio host cum social commentator and stand-up act is a mum of two and the faeces-filled reality of parenting is where most of her humour lies.
So if you're also an Australian mum born in the 80s, you'll most likely get her new show The Motherload, part of the Perth Comedy Festival.
Accordingly, there was just a small spattering of hetero males nervously eyeing the exits (and even fewer non-parents) among the fervent mostly-female crowd for its Perth opening night.
We know this because the Melbourne-based social media queen, who has amassed more than 100,000 Facebook fans, singled them out in her punchy one-hour routine full of singing, stories, nostalgia and a truckload of F-bombs.
Dressed like a drag queen, Rusciano chose her first target well - beloved Disney musical Frozen. She proceeded to lampoon the main characters and share new lyrics to the catchy tunes that artfully described the daily struggles of parenting.
Joined by her dad Vincey on guitar, Rusciano held no bars as she recollected her surprise pregnancy at 21 and the odious physical changes that came along with it. The supremely honest material was made even funnier by watching her Italian-born father laugh as she talked about nipples and thrush.
With irrepressible energy, Rusciano delved further into her childhood and adolescence, reminiscing over negligent 80s parenting and a bunch of relatable cultural symbols of the era.
But the night hit a nostalgic peak when memory lane led to John Farnham’s Whispering Jack concert. This, of course, resulted in a Farnham medley singalong. White wines in one hand, gleaming smart phones waving in the other, the audience knew all the words during the almost religious experience.
The climax was duly followed by more gross-out tales involving parent sex stories and porn. Yet even the crassest of jokes were full of heart and this tenderness hit a high note when Rusciano shared a story about her youngest daughter Odie.
Rusciano's best material is by far based on the challenges of parenting and her followers lapped it up like a good sauv blanc, swarming the star post-show for signings.
