Review: Tim Minchin at Town Hall Birmingham

Sep 28 2009 Review by Alison Dayani

Tim Minchin,
Town Hall, Birmingham.

I’M NOT sure what was more impressive, the masterly piano playing or the acerbic wit?

But Aussie musical comedian Tim Minchin merged them together for a night of intelligent, provocative and strangely melodic humour.

The Ready For This show on Saturday night may have been music-based but the creative, barefoot 33-year-old equally turned his hand to straight stand-up, which interlaced the show.

Religion, causality theories, evolution and Bono-style ‘save the world’ rock stars were at the brunt of many jokes that saw an almost faultless first half.

The second half however – and I write this with trepidation as one of the vengeful witty songs was dedicated to a journalist who gave him a bad review – dipped about half way through and became a more thought-provoking view on life than comedy.

Anyone who missed this gig has the chance to catch Minchin’s show when he returns on October 31 to Symphony Hall.

Verdict: 3/5