Review: Amos Gill: Going Down Swinging

The current cost of living crisis might not be a laughing matter for many people, but for Amos Gill, it forms the crux of his latest stand-up special, Going Down Swinging.

Framed around his attempts to sink as many beers as he can on an Air Canada flight to Australia, Gill’s latest show combines fin-dom tax collectors, acknowledging genocide before drag shows and insightful observations about Australians using racism as a coping mechanism for hating each other. Gill presents his latest show as “one really long story” and uses his quest to overturn a one-beer-per-flight cap as scaffolding for stories on lying to get a Croatian passport and the“babushka doll of intolerance” that is Australian society. He describes downloading airline terms and conditions to find out how many beers he’s allowed to drink as fighting for his country and tackles what exactly bravery means in today’s world, as well as what would happen should Australia ever be invaded.

At its best, the show is electric, with Gill using his knowledge as an Adelaide local, his confident stage presence and witty observations to bring the house down. While the idea behind the non-linear approach to storytelling is an interesting one, the execution can come across as a bit muddled at times. While the style of comedy may not be for everyone, Gill has delivered a show that pushes boundaries and will not leave audiences bored.

Amos Gill: Going Down Swinging, Gluttony, until 17 March