Frankie McNair bounds onto the stage of Huge Ass Mindset combat boot first, high-kicking her way into the spotlight with the kind of swagger she’s determined to claim for herself. The title is knowingly provocative: McNair may have a “huge ass,” but she is galaxies away from being a huge ass. Instead, her latest show is a fearless, funny and unexpectedly moving interrogation of anxiety, trauma, neurodiversity and the radical act of taking up space.

A relative newcomer, McNair won Best Newcomer at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival in 2022 and has since appeared in multiple Australian Broadcasting Corporation productions while developing work for stage and screen. Yet for all that outward success, she confesses to a long history of low self-esteem and self-sabotage. The show pivots on a question sparked by a recent life-altering event: why do some people shrink themselves so others can loom large? What would happen if, instead, you adopted the brazen confidence of a contestant on the latest Unreality Love At First Marriage Island? Would this “perfect” person apologise for inconveniencing others, for getting things wrong or, indeed, for anything at all? No. No, they would not. Their self-delusion fills the room. Their ass takes ALL the space.
 
Ultimately, the most striking aspect to this show is McNair’s strength of self, deftly woven through its fabric. The warning that came early materialises in a finale that is challenging of performer and audience but worth the slog for its uplifting payoff. This is one brave woman, typed without a hint of pathos or “air quotes”. And while it shows her individual grit, it also demonstrates the power of a supportive, loving community. Perhaps the takeaway message is that you alone can make your ass huge, but a community of huge asses is unstoppable.