Jason John Whitehead: The Joker

Sweat and rainwater dripped ominously to the floor in disturbingly large quantities. Something was not quite right that evening in the dark, echoing tunnels of the Underbelly. Perhaps it was the atrocious weather that made the audience that little bit more subdued, which led to a potentially good show losing all focus, which then inspired Jason John Whitehead to sweat to a degree rarely seen in public. His show, The Joker is intended to give an insight into the life of a professional comedian, but that theme seems to dissolve away very quickly, reappearing only intermittently later in the show.

With the pace beginning to flag and Whitehead taking awkward pause after awkward pause, it becomes clear that he's having a rather bad night, constantly losing his train of thought and highlighting his own slip-ups for the audience. At this stage, his improv and audience interaction techniques are tested to breaking point as he rescues his set from complete meltdown with the sheer force of his admittedly magnetic personality. Through deft use of a faulty microphone stand as a prop, he coaxes laughs that far exceed the decibel level of those that his written material provoke.

After all, it is abundantly clear that Whitehead is in the correct line of work. He has a natural comic charm that, if it were backed up by some better written and better rehearsed material, could take him to the next level of notoriety. Firstly though, he needs to invest in some more nourishing ingredients for his distinctly watery performance.