Words by Lucy Lester

What Commerce Revue lacked in precise editing, it more than made up for in enthusiastic and wondrous performances. This review is going to continue the Franki tradition of backhanded compliments and the Balfour tradition of hitting on the cast.

Sasha Meaney and Alex Gillezeau have done an admirable job; the revue shone due to an artful curation of skits. Perfume ad parodies, minimal scatology, and just the right amount of BDSM; skits that made you laugh, skits that captured relatable feelings and historical figures alike, whole cast skits, call back skits, nude skits (sometimes all in one), and a cameo by the Silver Surfer (from Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, of course). The directors also deserve credit for pulling together the cast, who were, without exception, highly talented and energetic.

Praise must go to Abbey Lenton for her stunning voice, red hair (excellent representation for gingers in the show which this reviewer appreciated) and some of the best acting I’ve seen in a Revue. She didn’t play an office lady. She BECAME one. Ojas Jyoti gave a stirring performance as Billy Elliott the horse, and Haydn Hickson was a standout in basically every skit he was in, dancing in the most spontaneous and contagious way I’ve ever seen in a revue. The aptly named Max Peacock revelled in attention, brought a disturbing amount of energy to every skit, and has a bright future as a ketamine dealer. Niamh Gallagher deserves points for popping out a baby on stage without blinking. Snaps to Fred Pryce for playing lizard Billy Graham to a tee despite working with literally nothing script-wise (a Franki backhander for you all). Tiff Wong also belongs in the Peacock category of freakish energy right until the last blackout.

Sure, there were flaws. Shocker. It’s a student production with basically no budget. Some of the skits were too long, or the jokes unclear, or something fell unexpectedly flat. Who’s been to a revue that didn’t drag a little in the second half? I’m not going to write this review with the condescension of an audience member who paid $85 to see something directed by Andrew Upton (mainly because I would never throw my money in a bin like that). The show was about as much fun as you can have on $20. And what it lacked in cutting it compensated with an artful roast of Science Revue’s absurd length, almost causing a fist fight between the Science Revue exec in the audience and the offending Comm Revue cast member. This was a personal highlight.

Despite its flaws, I would go so far as to say this show was remarkable even amongst faculty revues - I’ve never seen a cast so un-self-conscious, so happy to be there, or thriving more under the lights, and it was an absolute pleasure to witness.

Lucy Lester directed the 2018 Law Revue and this review was still positive so Commerce Revue must have been INCREDIBLE lmao

Hello Darkness My Old Friend

Words by Lucy Lester