Interview: Vigilantelope

By Sean Lynch
Interview with Comedians Vigilantelope
Stars of the show : Vigilantelope "Tale Of The Golden Lease"

Vigilantelope

It seems somewhat a right of passage for comedians to work their way through the university revue scene - was that history on your mind when forming Vigilantelope?

It's nice to know other comedians have found a pathway to funniness through Uni Revues.

Revues are a good practicing ground for aspiring joke-makers as the largely undergraduate audience members are usually so inebriated that they'll laugh at at almost anything (including darkness in scene changes and the sight of anyone holding a prop of any description).

In this context it's a bit easier to get a feel for performing comedy - certainly easier than heading to your local open mic night to perform a sketch about a peanut etc.

Whats the first sketch you can remember writing together - Are you embarrassed or in love with it now?

It was sketch about a peanut named Brian who goes to rehab because he was “assaulted” as a child.

Everyone in the group is embarrassed by it except for Nick, who is in love with it. Vachel also loves it. It was put forward for three different revues and never made it in - largely because it was written to include a 6ft peanut suit that we had no possible way of constructing/financing.

One day we will build that suit.

How daunting was your first comedy festival - whats your greatest fear heading into World's Funniest Island?

Our greatest fear is, ironically, our worst fear also. Probably a toss up between a) no-one laughing at our show and b) missing our train on the way to the show and being 20 minutes late… but everyone laughs.

A wise man once said that good timing is the key to great comedy - this applies to punchlines and also being there for the start of the show probably.

The obvious question about the group's name has to be asked - but seriously...what the f**k does it actually mean?

As a bit of background, the Vigilantelope is actually a rare and endangered African antelope that inhabits parts of Lesotho and Zimbabwe. Ever since the beauty of the Vigilantelope was captured by Zimbabwean painter Johannes Mutumbo in 1912, the distinctive markings and playful spirit of this amazing animal have endeared it to the hearts and minds of countless generations worldwide. 

Who could ever forget in 1995 when Dakarai, then a 6 year old Vigil-Antelope, gave birth to triplets at the Harare Zoo, Zimbabwe.  What a great day! We named our group after this extremely endangered species to raise awareness for its plight.

You can help out by visiting www.vigilantelope.com/saveme

You have also been working on Melbourne's SYN FM - how do you find adjusting your act from radio to the stage?

Well, basically, we talk louder and move around a bit more on stage. We play less songs I suppose.

I don't know, we have to dress up in costume and stuff. But in reality, stage is where it all started and the radio has been a bit of a tangential adventure (when you write that word it looks like 'tan genital'... which is what happens when you sunbake nude).

We like stage. When you're on stage, you have irrefutable proof that someone is actually listening to you try and be humorous. Whereas when on radio, you can never be completely sure that you are inflicting your jokes on anyone at all.

Although, statistically, there is probably someone out there who is bored / lonely enough to tune in and have a giggle.

Your first Melbourne Comedy Fest show was a monster hit - but will that success ever compare to Joel's triumph in the Asian pop idol competition?

Probably not. The only thing that might top the Asian Pop Idol win would be Joel winning TV's new hit series Australian Idol (which we think is a bit of a rip off).

We really hope Asian Pop Idol is getting royalties for that - it looks like it's the same format and everything, except that they use the Sydney Opera House for the final instead of Federation Square... and it's on TV.

Does he wander around thinking he is "THE BIG CHEESE" of the group?

(a) Yes he wanders. 
(b) Yes he thinks he is cheese. 
(c) In real life he is, in fact, not very big.
(d) All of the above.

With such a big group - is there one person in particular in the team that ends up being the punchline of everyone else's jokes off stage?

Probably Nick who is in the ethnic minority. Or Vachel who was born with a disorder that the others find quite amusing.

His parents tell him he should stand up for himself in those situations, but he is happy to 'ride the bumps' in the interests of group cohesion.

Your blog seems to suggest that there are a lot of "writing" and "blocking camps" for your show.

Is there much work that actually goes on there, or is it just an excuse for drinks to be written off as a "Work Expenses"?

Our camps are very well structured. We arise at 6am and play two hours of monopoly as a warm up.

Invariably, everyone wants to be the wheelbarrow and we usually decide that little conundrum with a test of strength we like to call "Hip and Shoulder a House". This is where we take it in turns to hip and shoulder houses along the street.

The winner is the one that first has the owner of the house come out and say "Stop hip and shouldering my house, please".

Of course, being archetypal Melbournian ragamuffins, we run off laughing, screaming "Vigi! Vigi! Vigi!" By this time the midday movie is on and we settle in for a cup of tea and a cup cake.

So, yes, you were onto something. We do end up writing very little.

Is there anyone you are keen on seeing yourself on the World's Funniest Island?

1. Each other.

2. Maybe some extended family you haven't caught up with for a while that heard about the show through your cousin (once removed), Judy.

3. And everyone else who is playing at the festival. Too many acts that we want to see and not enough time. It's the same story every year. We might start sleeping out in venues or just developing ice addictions so we don't have to sleep between shows.

Is there a moment in "Tale Of The Golden Lease" you are most proud of or that the audience should look out for?

The audience should probably look out for the part where the Airbus A380 lands on stage and all the celebrities pile out carrying the venomous pythons as fireworks explode.

The 120 extras have been rehearsing tirelessly for that sequence. Its pretty much the coolest stage moment ever written.

Whats your favourite gag in the show (the short personal in-jokes you guys will still love whether people in the audience laugh or not)?

Our favourite joke is probably the fact that the audience will constantly be looking out for the part where the Airbus A380 lands on stage and all the celebrities pile out carrying the venomous pythons as fireworks explode.

Other favourites include "Can you do this?" and "Hunt the Dugong, Kill the Dugong", which have both been cut.

Finish this sentence - "Roses are red, Violets are blue....."

I can row a boat. Canoe?

"Vigilantelope - Tale Of The Golden Lease"
When: October 17 & 18, 2009
Where: World's Funniest Island : The Comedy Festival On Cockatoo Island
More Info: www.worldsfunniestisland.com/