Comedy doesn’t have an expiration date. In fact, good comedy is timeless.
Tom Ballard knows this, even if he is the epitome of Gen Y. At 21 years of age, he’s on his way to being one of the shining stars of Australian comedy, a title helped along by his presence on Triple J breakfast radio.
It should come as no surprise then that his upcoming appearance at the Wild West Comedy Festival is in a brilliantly tongue-in-cheek show called Tom Ballard, Since 1989.
‘It’s about going through things for the first time,’ Ballard said of his new show. ‘Mainly heartbreak. It talks about a breakup I went through last year and how that affected me and how I dealt with that and how it’s all part of growing up.
‘What I like about this show is that it’s all pretty universal, regardless of sexuality, because it all relates to heartbreak.’
The heartbreak he’s referring to is the breakup of his relationship with fellow blonde haired Gen Y comedian Josh Thomas last year. It was a high profile split that, fortunately, was incredibly amicable.
‘I think the media liked the fact that we were both comedians, and then the fact that we were a celebrity gay couple, and there aren’t too many of them out there either. It added a little bit of extra scandal to it. It gave it an extra dimension.
‘So the first comedy show (I wrote) was about coming out and being gay, but I don’t want to make that my thing: I don’t want to be pigeonholed as a gay comedian. So I’m just trying to talk about the experience as honestly as I can and it being more a relationship than a particularly gay one.’
Of course, laying your heart on the line – or divulging it in public – can be a particularly harrowing experience, especially when you’re doing it to rouse a laugh.
‘I did get a little nervous with this show, at its opening up in Brisbane, particularly because I’m very honest in this show and I’m very personal in this show. So if you reveal something personal about yourself in a joke and it doesn’t get a laugh… well, that’s doubly horrible.
‘So yes I was nervous. Now I just really love doing this show and I’m really proud of this show. And I get excited about doing it in front of people.’
Of course, Ballard is philosophical about the whole experience, belying a wisdom well beyond his years.
‘I think heartbreak is that point that changes you from a child to an adult,’ Ballard mused. ‘It’s a real act of maturing. And while I certainly wish that heartbreak hadn’t happened, it certainly did provide a nice backdrop for my show.’
Tom Ballard, Since 1989 runs at The Hellenic Centre on May 27 and May 28 as part of the Wild West Comedy Festival. www.bocsticketing.com.au
Scott-Patrick Mitchell
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