Ruby Waxes Lyrical at Underbelly Launch

Ruby Wax hosted the 2011 Underbelly yesterday afternoon (3 August 2011), allowing occasional interjections from fellow performer Judith Owen. The friends appear together in Losing It, their candid and funny show about living with mental illness.

Highlights at the event included Police Academy veteran and man of 1000 voices Michael Winslow, who supplied tasters of his show with an uncanny Louis Armstrong and an even more accurate reproduction of a Tesco scanning machine. Other international comedy tit-bits included Canadian, Dana Alexander plus the surreal Lounge Room Confabulators and Sammy J and Randy from Australia.

Virtuoso musicians Worbey and Farrell did rather amazing things with a piano keyboard and Frisky and Mannish did a rather unique take on an old Carpenters number.

Street acrobats from 3RUN, creators of parkour show Free Run, provided a visually spectacular finale though the rather buff members of the group have little to fear from the efforts of Underbelly founders, Ed Bartram and Charlie Wood, whose valiant efforts to emulate the techniques of the thrilling gymnasts drew cheers from the crowd assembled in the Udderbelly.

Other Underbelly highlights include comedy from Craig Hill, Barry and Stuart, Richard Herring and the return of the slightly bemused Hamiltons, who welcomed the guests to the launch.

The venue also hosts international multi-award winning Adventures of Alvin Sputnik: Deep Sea Explorer and the stars of the 2011 World Cup opening ceremony, Soweto Entsha.

Although without the McEwan Hall this year, Underbelly has added two venues in Bristo Square – the Dairy Room and the Wee Cow.