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Monkey business
comes good
NINA CONTI AND IVOR DEMBINA
Hampstead Comedy Club
APPARENTLY the Monkey is depressed. That is what we are told as Nina Conti invites her simian sidekick to clamber out of her shopping bag, climb on to her hand and tell the world why he has been dealt such a bum deal.
But the endless cracks suggest he is the happiest depressant in history, and it means the sell out crowd at the Hampstead Comedy Club (HCC) are in for a treat.
For Nina, the Saturday shift is a home gig: she grew up round the corner and judging by the reaction the emergence of the cute little chap from the bag garners, regulars know what they are in for.
Nina’s act works for a number of reasons. She is a skilled ventriloquist and this gives her loud mouthed sidekick presence. You have to keep reminding yourself that it is Nina throwing abuse in her own direction.
The gags are pretty good too – they would work regardless of whether they were told by a woman with her hand up a monkeys backside (a rich source of comment during the show) or were simply told on their own. She plays the straight man to the monkey’s permanent gag telling act.
Nina stands looking coy, shy and embarrassed as the monkey shames her with his rudeness, his attitude and ability to talk about her personal life. Her poor husband sits in the wings and is showered with abuse while Nina pleads with her simian buddy to shut up.
Of course he doesn’t and we can all be thankful for that. The punchline of the gig is great, and I will try to share it without ruining the surprise: it basically consists of Nina and the Monkey swapping roles. Very clever, and brilliantly delivered.
The club, running now for 15 years, is hosted by Ivor Dembina. He gets the crowd ready for much mirth by doing some straightforward banter with the audience, getting good laughs from cheap gags.
The first act was impressive: Rob Heaney had two riffs he laid on us that stand out. A wonderful rambling diatribe about moving to London and how Time Out does nothing but underline what a lazy couch potato he is. He also told a clever joke about being from the Isle of Man and doing a gig on the Isle of Dogs: the East End area that is the best friend of his island, (he gleefully pointed out).
As Ivor pointed out the show was more variety that stand up. The first was a straightforward comic, the second act impressionist Steve Nallon, before Nina and monkey’s star turn.
The club clearly has form – it was bursting and for many this was not their first time sampling the delights of the HCC. I can see why – an exceptionally enjoyable evening, not said (like Nina) through gritted teeth.
Ivor’s own show, “This is not a subject for comedy,” a light hearted attempt to unravel the Israeli / Palestinian crisis, features in a special one-off on Tuesday March 11. Worth a look
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