BMA Comedy Profile

Following sold out show YEP!, award winning stand-up comedian Bron Lewis is bringing her highly acclaimed new show Probably to The Street Theatre on Friday, 15 September (get yer tix via the venue!)

Stacked with stories from her Canberra upbringing, including her clumsy and desperate approach to fitting in at a private high school whilst living in government housing, performing Probably here ticks off a Canberran childhood dream of hers.

So let’s get to know her better before the show!

What got you into comedy?

I am a mother of three and was a highschool teacher for close to a decade, so convincing apathetic people to listen to me is part of my wheelhouse. I began performing at storytelling events, and the rush that comes with making an audience laugh is way better than teaching Hamlet, so the choice to ditch teaching and follow comedy was logical.

How would you describe your style of comedy to the layman?

Dry, observational, and physical – the bigger the stage the better. My comedy is filled with stories, and Probably is extremely nostalgic about my childhood in Canberra. I absolutely love fleshing out a story and finding all the funny bits in it.

Who are some of your favourite comedians?

I love Kitty Flanagan, Urzula Carson, Cal Wilson, Claire Hooper, and Daniel Connell. All so clever and so damn funny.

What’s one of the funniest/weirdest things that’s happened?

I did a gig once when a man heckled me a number of times. I don’t mind a heckle, but this guy was relentless. His heckles were strange, and they were all respectfully about my mother.

Assuming he must have been my mother’s friend, I approached him after the show and asked him if he knew her. He did not.

What’s one of your proudest moments?

Apologies for the humble brag, but I am only four years into my comedy career, and am so proud at how many shows I have sold out. I will never get over looking at an audience and seeing people I have never met, who have willingly (I assume) come to see me do an hour of stand-up. It blows my tiny mind.

Comedians hate being asked “tell us a joke”. So… What’s one of your favourite jokes? (either of yours, or someone else)

“I am an avoidant person. I avoid hard feelings, negative thoughts and difficult conversations. Some people say, “You have to feel hard things to grow as a person”.

And to those people I say… Nothing, because I avoid people like that.”

What exactly is the meaning of life?

I’ve watched a lot of people get rich and it genuinely made them unhappier, so I figure you may as well go for a career in the arts.

Hecklers… A help or a hindrance?

I’ve had a lot of hecklers in my career and, sorry to brag again, I’ve won every single battle. It isn’t too much of a brag though – hecklers usually aren’t the smartest person in the room.

As an ex-highschool teacher, I am extremely accustomed to rude confrontations. But now that I don’t have registration to worry about, I’m allowed to say exactly what I am thinking back.

It is perhaps one of the greatest parts of my job.

What is your favourite stand up set?

Mike Birbiglia’s Netflix special The New One is incredible. It is not only hilarious, but it is filled with stories and heartwarming moments; exactly how I want people to describe Probably.

Danish word ‘hygge’ encapsulates a general feeling of warmth. What creates this sensation for you?

I wish I could say something philosophical here, but I would be lying. I feel hygge when my children sleep through the night. Since becoming a mother ten years ago, I can count on one hand the amount of times I have woken in the morning naturally. My youngest is only two, so I imagine I have about another 200 years until he sleeps through the night consistently. Can’t wait.

Anything else you’d like to add?

I have toured Probably around the country, but I am most excited to bring it to Canberra on 15 September. I grew up in Canberra, and a lot of my stories stem from there. It will be at The Street Theatre, and I recall being a chubby teenager obsessed with Drama, never imagining I would be performing there. Tickets have been selling really well, so it is bound to be my favourite performance of Probably ever.

Bron Lewis Probably: Friday 15th September, 7.30 pm at The Street Theatre. Get yer tix here!