I’ve been going to the Best Comedy Show on Earth for a few years now. It’s a smorgasbord of comedy with each of the 10 comedians given about 10 minutes or so to deliver their best. This year’s show was hosted by American comedian, clown, and actor Jack Tucker (real name Zack Zucker).
Now Tucker is an interesting guy, he’s good-looking, dishevelled and has handcuffs attached to his slightly oversized pants. He doesn’t look like a clown, but his on stage persona is certainly madcap and overtly self-deprecating. Using sound effects and music stings to aid his punchlines his patter is reminiscent of those 1980s American radio shows where the DJs talk constantly and use gimmicks to keep up the energy. His shtick is funny, and he interacts with hecklers well as he plays on being a ‘bad’ comedian and apologising for wasting our time. His most memorable moment was using a microphone as a baseball bat and smashing an apple with it.
New York based Benny Feldman was up next and he confessed right up front that he has Tourette’s syndrome. His jokes were accompanied by an almost constant clicking sound and various sudden body movements. The jokes were rapid fire one liners on a a variety of topics – some worked, some didn’t but that didn’t matter as he’s quite engaging and willing to make jokes at his own expense such as the clicks being a form of echolocation or simply him rebooting.
Annie Guo is from China but living in New Zealand who has fun with stereotypes and disarmingly says she’s from Albany, but moved there from Botany. She’s funny and engaging and riffed on the on the laziness of kiwis, social etiquette and politics with a clever barb about her country of birth.
Sean Collier is a local lad with some hilarious observations about comedy, regional New Zealand with its waterfalls, meth and crime and tells a very funny story about getting beaten up in a small town. He says he wants to bring on the apocalypse and has some wry things to say about boomers and misogyny.
☕️ Want to support my independent Journalism? – Buy Me a Coffee
Martin Urbano is another American comedian who likes to shock with topics such as elder abuse or getting a boner in high school. The stories are edgy, funny, and always have a twist that you don’t always see coming. When you do guess ahead of time what the punchline is going to be – such as having sex with his sister, his delivery guarantees a laugh anyway. He’s clever, and even attempted to tell the most jokes in 60 seconds. i dont think he beat any records, but it was amusing watching him try.
Just before intermission, a trio of locals known as the Laser Kiwis offered us the choice of a safe or naughty set and of course we chose the latter. What followed was a series of jokes and then a quite weird but funny burlesque item.
Up after the break was Evie Orpe with a set full of jokes aimed at Ikea, Lower Hutt, and the delights of the Koru Lounge where she encountered Dan Carter. She’s is disarmingly funny and can talk about the seemingly mundane and make one laugh.
Itay Dom has a curious take on comedy. He speaks as though he’s saying his thoughts outlaid but in a very laid back way so that the jokes creep up and take you by surprise. Whether is about people eating chips in the audience, or throwing up in an Uber, or roleplaying as nurse and patient with a girlfriend, he is a master story teller.
David Correos is another local who can take a simple story, whether true or not and keeping an audience engaged. So, apparently he loves talking to people at Cotton On, has always wanted to be diagnosed with ADHD. One entertaining but edgy story involved getting too close to children at Wet N Wild in Australia. It was all jokes… I’m hoping.
The final comic was Sashi Perera who was born in Sri Lanka but has lived in Australia most of her life. She seems polite and has a very dignified manner so her jokes on racism, refugees, and dating apps come as a delightful and funny surprise. Observations on marriage and how not having kids causes curious and hypocritical responses from people who are parents was very clever.
For more at the 2026 New Zealand International Comedy Festival click here.
