They say laughter is the best medicine, and there's no shortage of it in WA. While the biggest international comedy acts regularly pack arenas and theatres in Perth, the city has a booming underground scene with performances happening almost every night of the week. Events such as Perth Comedy Festival, Just For Laughs, Fringe World and RAW Comedy feature hundreds of acts, while festival roadshows deliver laughs to locations across the state.
They say laughter is the best medicine, and there's no shortage of it in WA. While the biggest international comedy acts regularly pack arenas and theatres in Perth, the city has a booming underground scene with performances happening almost every night of the week. Events such as Perth Comedy Festival, Just For Laughs and Fringe World and feature hundreds of acts, while festival roadshows deliver laughs to locations across the state.
You are guaranteed to almost be able to find some form of comedy on every night in Perth. You can find international comedians packing out the RAC Arena, Astor Theatre and the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre.
There’s also comedy dedicated venues like The Comedy Lounge which have comedy acts running all throughout the week so you can always find an act here. This guide will give you all the insight you need into comedy in Perth and where you can find a comedy act to suit you.
Where To Go
The Comedy Lounge located in the CBD features stand up comedians from Australia and also hosts a range of international acts too. You can catch a show here from Thur – Sat while you enjoy dinner and drinks.
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Lazy Susan’s Comedy Den located at The Brisbane Hotel in Mount Lawley, and hosts Shapiro Tuesdays for upcoming comedians, Stand Up every Friday & The Big HOO-HAA every Saturday. This venue is great if you like something a little more intimate and enjoy your comedy served with a drink.
The Infinite Jest Comedy at The Flying Scotsman in Mount Lawley solves your problems of what to do on a Monday night as they host an experimental comedy night monthly every Monday.
The Fremantle Comedy Factory held at the Sail and Anchor that has a live comedy act every Thursday night from 7.30 pm and the best part? It’s only $5 entry.
The Craft in Northbridge brings you beers and comedy on the last Saturday of every month right in their very own beer gardens for a more chilled Saturday night plan. Or they also host Comedy nights on Wednesdays for your mid week pick-me-up.
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Festivals
Perth Comedy Festival is held every year in Perth throughout April and May and has established itself as a landmark event on the WA Cultural calendar. The comedy acts take place at various locations throughout Perth and the annual programme includes a range of events and special showcases.
The Gala is always the main attraction of the festival and is always guaranteed to be a sell-out. The Gala is the biggest comedy event and the line-up brings together the best acts of the festival plus the next big things for a huge night of comedy at the Regal Theatre in Subiaco, it’s the best way to see all of the festivals best in one night.
From stand-up to sketch, satire, improv, musical, absurdist, theatre, magic and kids comedy, there’s something in the program to satisfy all tastes and ages throughout the festival.
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Fringe World Festival is back again for 2019 running from Jan 19- Feb 18 and has been named the 3rd largest Fringe Festival in the world. The festival takes place at various venues throughout the Perth Metro area and brings a whole new life to Northbridge during the festivities.
There is a full programme of events with Fringe that has multiple events running all throughout the day. You can pre-order tickets or turn up to the box office on the day and just pick a show to attend (ensuring it hasn’t sold out). There are free shows and paid ticketed shows, so there really is something for every budget. You can also subscribe to be a Fringe World Friend, and for an annual subscription fee you can reap the benefits throughout the festival including: 2 for 1 discounted tickets, skip the line multi-pass and express friends line at the box offices.
There isn’t just shows, The Pleasure Garden which is located at Russel Square in Northbridge offers food trucks of food and drink throughout the festival which is always popular for a low key night out with some of the shows also taking place within Russel Square. With all of this going on throughout the month, Fringe is really not one to be missed.
[gallery columns="2" link="none" size="full" ids="https://media.localista.com.au/2018/08/steph-tisdell.jpg|Steph Tisdell,https://media.localista.com.au/2018/08/18238855_1520946914617374_7179895233615362750_o.jpg|Melbourne International Comedy Festival Roadshow "]
You can join in and witness the Melbourne International Comedy Festival Roadshow as they tour Australia and make stops in Western Australia throughout May and June. The roving comedy show features comedians from Australia and internationally and showcases everything from stand-up, to sketch and satire in one massive side-splitting show.
This tour takes on regional WA from Broome to Margaret River before stopping into Perth so is perfect for anyone in regional WA and an easy way to catch various performers all in one show.
Image Source: Chris Rock - 93.7; Comedy Lounge - Comedy Lounge; Perth Comedy Festival - So Perth; Fringe Festival - Fringe Facebook; Steph Tisdell & Melbourne Roadshow - Melbourne International Comedy Festival Facebook