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See Do Eat Review
Review by Justine Hall |
14 March 2023
Musical comedy fans rejoice: the dynamic duo The Coconuts - aka Shabana and Leela - are here to bring you an evening of deadpan laughs and hilariously creative songwriting
Leela and Shabana have such a wonderful sense of companionship and a lovely shared sweetness throughout the show. The duo trade jokes, compliments and occasional barbs as they serenade the audience with gentle melodies - with healthy doses of unexpected swearing and innuendo thrown in for good measure.
Leela brings the musical tunes through an assortment of guitars, from gentle acoustic notes to her playful Casio DG20 synthesizer. At one point a slideshow accentuates their comedy with a sort of faux seminar describing the “brown” experience - a hilarious deconstruction of the reality of being a non-white person living in Australia.
It's a hard balancing act to be both ridiculously crass and sweetly endearing at the same time, but The Coconuts make it look easy. Their deadpan humour is absolutely on point and their unassuming nature aids their A+ comedic timing. Even a technical mishap early in the show with their PowerPoint cannot slow down their charm.
It’s safe to say this show offers more than just fantastic artistic chemistry: these girls are genuinely hilarious. Whether they're lampooning stereotypes about ethnic or queer minorities, or harmonising about tiny furniture, every song is incredibly funny and well-rounded (a totally unexpected and perfectly rendered impression of singer Julia Stone literally left me in tears).
This one's a must for fans of Garfunkel and Oates or Flight of the Conchords, or even just those with a healthy sense of humour. Riotously funny, endearing and surprisingly touching.