RICH Hall is rightly regarded as one of the funniest comedians to come out of the US in recent times.
And, as he is based here most of the time, we have over the past three decades been lucky enough to benefit from his wonderfully grouchy sense of humour, writes James Rampton.
Now he’s on the cusp of appearing at the Palace Theatre in Redditch with his new show ‘Hoedown’ bringing the best of his crotchety comedy and music too to town.
The comedian, who has won both a Perrier (Edinburgh Comedy Festival) and a Barry (Melbourne International Comedy Festival) Award, is the most dazzlingly funny curmudgeon in The West.
His straight-talking and acerbic comedy leaves his targets reeling and his audiences in stitches. He sends up whichever country he is in, but perhaps reserves his most trenchant scorn for his native USA.
Rich, who has presented such critically acclaimed BBC 4 documentaries as ‘Rich Hall’s Californian Stars’ and ‘Rich Hall’s You Can Go To Hell, I’m Going To Texas’, says: “I love the fact that when a live show is over, it’s gone. It’s happened, and it will never happen like that again. It can’t be replicated. That’s a great magical moment.”
He observes that, “In every single show, there are always two or three moments where I’m thinking, ‘Wow, where did that come from?’ You’re constantly thinking on your feet.”
One of the many unique features of Rich’s act is that he goes out of his way to find out about the town he is playing in and then improvises a song on stage about it. He goes the extra mile to tailor-make his material for that particular venue. “I try to tap into what is happening locally and address that musically by writing an improvised song based on the town I’m in.”
Audiences really appreciate this bespoke comedy. “Once they realise you’re not just trotting out your regular act, people think, ‘He’s made a real effort. He’s on our side, so we’re on his side.” Then you can take them anywhere.
“I like to do something custom-made every night, otherwise you would just be like a robot. That can really wear you down. Nobody gets more sick of hearing their own voice than a comedian.”
The stand-up is one of only a handful of performers who can genuinely combine comedy and music in one act.
He says that, “I will have such a great collection of musicians on stage for the Hoedown. Having a band there makes it a much richer experience – if you’ll pardon the phrase!”
Tickets for Rich Hall’s Hoedown tour can be found at www.offthekerb.co.uk or from the Palace, priced £18 from the box office in person, on 01527 65203 or at http://www.redditchpalacetheatre.co.uk/
