Blue Roo Theatre Company Inc.’s original production Laughing Out Loud included comedy, music, and dancing. There were plenty of laughs and audience interaction in this hour-long performance of skits and sketches, and the cast seemed to enjoy themselves as much as the audience did.
Blue Roo Theatre Company Inc. is a Brisbane-based not-for-profit independent production company, connecting the disability community with the performing arts. Each production is unique, and the performers and crew live with disabilities and are role models for their peers and audiences of all ages.
Performed at the Brisbane Multicultural Centre, Laughing Out Loud was co-directed by Clint Bolster and featured elements of physical and slapstick comedy, clowning, improvisation, and live music and song. Each member of the ensemble had moments to shine in the spotlight, and James Loakes connected one scene to the next as the confident and personable master of ceremonies, as well as participating in many of the scenes.
Several of the sketches featured the full-face, non-verbal masks that Bolster frequently incorporates in his work through ensemble The Mask Family. The Blue Roo performers embodied these masked characters for scenes that included the cinema – with the backing of Milli Newell’s lovely ukulele and vocal performance – and an art class.
Laughing Out Loud also included a humorous (and interactive) lecture on termites, an extraterrestrial tourist bulletin, and a competition to find the worst (and therefore best) dad jokes. As well as the full-face masks, the cast frequently changed costume accessories throughout the show to indicate changing characters.
Laughing Out Loud concluded with a scene of musical statues narrated and directed in live voiceover by co-director Clint Bolster. After the performance, the audience had the opportunity to ask the artists questions, and they spoke about their favourite parts of the show.
It is always a joy to watch a live performance in which the cast seem to be enjoying themselves, and this was certainly the case for Blue Roo Theatre Company Inc.’s funny and playful Laughing Out Loud.
Laughing Out Loud was performed at the Queensland Multicultural Centre, Kangaroo Point, from 13-14 June 2025
For further information, visit the Blue Roo website
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