FUNNY man Sam Longley has two of the best critics on-hand to scrutinise his comedy.
His 10-year-old daughter and seven-year-old son are not afraid to dish dirt if necessary.
So what is their verdict of dad’s new improvised skit show, The Little Hoo-Haa! – a kids’ version of The Big Hoo-Haa!?
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READ NOWThey think it is a hoot.
“If they don’t like what I do, then I know I’ve got to go back to the drawing board and start again,” Longley said.
“That’s the thing with kids’ audiences – they tell you straight away if they don’t like something.
“They have none of the social filters that adults have: if they like it they are 100 per cent on board and if they don’t like it then they start fidgeting and you can see them switch off straight away, which is awesome feedback because this is improve, so we can change it up at any point.”
The Little Hoo-Haa!, premiering at Fringe World this year, follows on from the success of The Big Hoo-Haa!, starting in Fremantle 16 years ago and later moving to its current base at the Brisbane Hotel in Perth.
“Adults and kids invest in the show by giving us suggestions and then love it when we stuff up, absolutely relish in the moments when we fail and then are so lovely and surprised and encouraging when we succeed in a beautiful piece of theatre or story,” Longley said.
The Perth comedian said the biggest challenge of shifting from adult to children’s humour was ensuring he and his ensemble hit the right balance of comedy.
In this show, aimed at children aged six and older, the team must appeal to kids and accompanying adults.
“Everyone laughs at a fart joke but there are only so many fart jokes you can do before it just gets ridiculous and that’s no fun for the adults – they just don’t what to hear a lot of crude jokes – and the kiddos after a while go ‘Well, this is very one-note’,” Longley said.
“My daughter for example is very sophisticated: her level of understanding and ability to grasp humour is far greater than people give her and her peers credit for.”
The Little Hoo-Haa! is part of the UWA 2018 Young People’s Performance Season.
THE ESSENTIALS
What: The Little Hoo-Haa!
When: July 2-14
Where: Dolphin Theatre, UWA
Tickets: ticketsWA.com