Hugging Comedians
  • NOW.. ONTO THE COMEDY
  • HUGS ACHIEVED
  • CONTACT
  • NOW.. ONTO THE COMEDY
  • HUGS ACHIEVED
  • CONTACT
Hugging Comedians

now.. onto the comedy

Santino Merino – ‘You Haven’t Changed a Bit’

9/28/2016

 
Two word review: family affair 
After chatting with Santino Merino in August 2016, I was keen to check out his 2016 Melbourne Fringe Festival show ‘You Haven’t Changed a Bit’. The show is a comedic exploration of identity, family and homecoming, recounting the days following his return to Chicago after living abroad in Indonesia for two years.
 
We were in for a special treat on Wednesday night with the honourable guest, Santino’s mother, in the front row of the audience. This lead to a couple of extra laughs and their interactions were hilarious to watch. Santino, have you considered becoming a double-act? 
 
As a keen storyteller, Santino’s show is deeply personal but entertaining as he laces jokes throughout. The performance also features a number of passionate impersonations of his family; the reimagining of his mother is a particular highlight!
 
With so many entertaining stories to tell, it’s a difficult challenge to bring them all together and work out which one requires the greatest emphasis. As each story ended, I felt there was more to be heard, and on occasion, either greater depth or additional humour to be drawn out - even if this meant utilising a bit of artistic licence.   
 
With the performance based on his own experiences, Santino needs to match his honesty about his family and past with equal parts humour or pathos for the show’s duration. He finds the perfect balance in the middle parts of the show as he hit his stride at peak confidence. This confidence helped Santino nail his punch lines and added to the impact of his stories. Where his confidence waned, the balance wasn’t quite there and the show lost momentum.
 
Club Voltaire’s intimate atmosphere suits Santino’s compassionate approach to the show well.  If you observe his face as he spins a yarn, you can see how much he enjoys telling his stories and the reactions they receive.
 
Keen to check Santino Merino’s show ‘You Haven’t Changed a Bit’? It’s on at Club Voltaire (14 Raglan St, North Melbourne) from 28 September to 2 October. Get your tickets here! 
Picture

Comments are closed.

    editor

    Andy
    Melbourne-based comedy enthusiast.

    If you are a Melbourne-based comedian or a comedian just passing through, please get in touch! I'll buy you a coffee, we'll talk about comedy, and I'll write up our chat for others to enjoy (hug optional but recommended).


     

    Categories

    All
    2018 Melbourne Fringe Festival
    2018 Melbourne International Comedy Festival
    2018 Midsumma Festival
    2019 Melbourne International Comedy Festival
    Aaron Gocs
    Adam Knox
    Adam Richard
    Adam Rozenbach
    Aidan Jones
    Aisling McGrogan
    Alasdair Tremblay Birchall
    Alasdair Tremblay-Birchall
    Alex Jae
    Alex Ward
    Alice Fraser
    Alice Tovey
    Ali McGregor
    Alistair Baldwin
    Andrew Keen
    Andrew McClelland
    Andrew Strano
    Angela Fouhy
    Angela Green
    Angus Gordon
    Anna Thomson
    Anne Edmonds
    Annie Louey
    Anthony 'Lehmo' Lehmann
    Anthony McCormack
    Arj Barker
    Aunty Donna Boys
    Aurelia St Clair
    Barney Pollock
    Barnie Duncan
    Bart Freebairn
    Becky Lucas
    Bec Redsell
    Bella Green
    Ben Knight
    Ben Lomas
    Ben McCarthy
    Ben Squires
    Birds Basement Comedy
    Blake Everett
    Blake Freeman
    Brendan Wan
    Brianna Williams
    Britt Myers
    Broni Lisle
    Caili Christian
    Cait Johnson
    Caitlyn Staples
    Cameron Duggan
    Cameron James
    Cam Knight
    Captain Frodo
    Catfish Comedy
    Celia Pacquola
    Chanu Choi
    Christian Lutz
    Chris Wainhouse
    Claire Hagan
    Claire Sullivan
    Clara Cupcakes
    Clinton Haines
    Club Voltaire Comedy
    Colwyn Buckland
    Comedy Big Time At Howler
    Comedy @ European Bier Cafe
    Comedy @ Spleen
    Completely Improvised Potter
    Completely Improvised Shakespeare Soothplayers
    Completely Improvised Shakespeare - Soothplayers
    Crab Lab
    Daisy Berry
    Damian Callinan
    Damian Cosgriff
    Damien Power
    Dane Simpson
    Dani Cabs
    Danielle Walker
    Daniel Sloss
    Danny Bensley
    Danny McGinlay
    Daria Smith
    Dave Callan
    Dave Thornton
    David Massingham
    David O'Doherty
    David Quirk
    David Rose
    DeAnne Smith
    Demi Lardner
    Denis Lock
    Dilruk Jayasinha
    Dirty Secrets Comedy
    Donna Collins
    Doug Anthony Allstars
    El Jaguar
    Ella Lawry
    Elle Wootton
    Eloise Antonie
    Elyce Phillips
    Emily Joy
    Emily Tresidder
    Ethan Andrews
    Evan Hocking
    Eve Ellenbogen
    Fiannah De Rue
    Filip Lescaut
    Fiona O'Loughlin
    Frankie McNair
    Frankie & Sal
    Frank Woodley
    Freya Finch
    Gabriel Francis
    Gearard McGeown
    Gen Fricker
    George Dimarelos
    Georgie Daniels
    Geraldine Hickey
    Gillian Cosgriff
    Gillian English
    Girls Sing It Better
    Greg Larsen
    Hannah Kelly
    Harris Stuckey
    Hayley Tantau
    Here.Live.Now
    Hugging Comedians' Melbourne International Comedy Festival Awards
    Ian McCarthy
    Indiana Kiely
    Interviews
    Isabel Angus
    Isabelle Knight
    Ivan Aristeguieta
    Izzy Ali
    Jack McGorlick
    Jacob Sacher
    James Veitch
    Janelle Da Silva
    Jared Jekyll
    Jayden Masciulli
    Jay Morrissey
    Jen Carnovale
    Jess Perkins
    Joel Creasey
    Joe Schaffer
    John Dore
    Jonathan Schuster
    Joseph Green
    Josh Webb
    Juan Miles
    Karl Chandler
    Kate McLennan
    Kimberly Twiner
    Kirsty Webeck
    Laura Buskes
    Laura Dunemann
    Lawrence Leung
    Lawrence Mooney
    Leaky Bucket
    Lelda Kapsis
    Lemon Comedy
    Leon Huxtable
    Lily Fish
    Liz Skitch
    Lords Of Strut
    Luisa Omielan
    Luka Muller
    Lukas Quinn
    Luke Belle
    Luke McGregor
    Luke Ryan
    Maddy Weeks
    Madi Savage
    Mae Martin
    Mathew Hespe
    Matt Harvey
    Matthew Hespe
    Matthew Vasquez
    Matt Hofmann
    Matt Kilpa
    Matt Stewart
    Matty B
    Matt Young
    Melbourne Fringe Festival 2017
    Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2017
    Melissa Tracina
    Michael Hing
    Michael Shafar
    Mike Goldstein
    Miles Munn
    Millie Holten
    Miss Maple Rose
    Mitchell E Roberts
    Mitch Garling
    Murphy McLachlan
    Naomi Higgins
    Natalie Harris
    Nat Malcolm
    Nick Capper
    Nick Cody
    Nick Quon
    Odd Mantis
    Paige Hally
    Paul Noodle Phd. Candidate
    Paul Richards
    Perri Cassie
    Peter Jones
    Phoebe O'Brien
    PickUp
    PO PO MO CO
    Quick Bites Comedy
    Rachael Millanta
    Raewyn Pickering
    Reeni Inosha
    Rhi Down
    Rhys Nicolson
    Rob Caruana
    Rob Hunter
    Rochester Comedy
    Rohan Ganju
    Roland Hoffman
    Ross Purdy
    Rusty Berther
    Ryan Good
    Sam Garlepp
    Sam Taunton
    Santino Merino
    Sarah Jones
    Seemingly Evil Productions
    Sharon Davis
    Simon Hawkings
    Simon Taylor
    Snort
    Solange Foley-Dawson
    Sonia Di Iorio
    Steen Raskopoulous
    Steph Broadbridge
    Stephen Porter
    Stewart Walker
    Stuart Daulman
    Stuart Goldsmith
    Taco Knight
    Tash York
    Taylor Griffiths
    The Big HOO-HAA!
    The Comedy Corner
    The Comedy Store
    The Improv Conspiracy
    The Level Sevens
    The Real Improvisers Of Melbourne
    Tiana Hogben
    Tim Clark
    Tim Green
    Tim Vine
    Tom Ballard
    Tom Burton
    Tom Clarke
    Tom Gleeson
    Tommy Dassalo
    Tommy Little
    Tom Sanderson
    Tom Walker
    Tripod
    Urvi Majumdar
    Vincent Tshaka
    Xander Allan
    Xavier Michelides
    Zack Dyer
    Zoe Coombs Marr
    Zoe Gough

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly