Anh Do’s live show combines key elements from his much-acclaimed 2010 autobiography The Happiest Refugee, updated details about his life and growing family, photos and videos on the screen behind him, and some straightforward but lovely stand-up stuff, much of which was very funny.
After an amusing opening 10 or so minutes from Anh’s comedian pal Joel Ozborn (who offered a few unsurprising gags about the US election), Anh took to the stage to, oddly, a snatch of Metallica’s Enter Sandman. He then began with some light jokes, before getting into the details of his childhood, his family’s life in Vietnam during and after the war, and their escape in a leaky fishing boat with something like 40 others. And if anyone can squeeze any sort of humour out of recounting two terrifying attacks by pirates, it’s Anh.
Explaining that he studied for five years to be a lawyer but then gave it away basically because comedians don’t work 70 hours a week, Anh got into the complex details of how his family fits together, and it was most heartfelt, no matter how tricky. But there was always forgiveness and understanding, especially for his Dad, who simply vanished for nine years, but was eventually welcomed back with open arms.
It’s obvious that this is sometimes raw for Anh, who might well have performed the show more than a hundred times but still tears up. And so, it was surely a relief for him to be able to have a breather while the screen played, for example, a montage of his training for TV’s Dancing With The Stars back in 2007, where he got all the way to the finals because, as his Dad always said, “Give it a go and see what happens”. Even if, as Anh admits several times, he can’t dance!
And, finally, after a clip of highlights from the ABC’s Anh’s Brush With Fame, the audience departed as happy as… well, as happy as Anh Do.
Anh Do: The Happiest Refugee Live! was a one-night-only event at Adelaide Festival Theatre, as part of this year’s OzAsia Festival.
