Presented by: Century Entertainment
She’s sexy and she knows it, and she’s damn funny too. Elouise Eftos is coming for the patriarchy and evading tall poppies while she does it
Reviewed by Justin Clarke
Le Cascadeur at The Garden of Unearthly Delights
Thu 06 Mar – Sat 08 Mar: 9:30pm
Sun 09 Mar: 8:30pm
Tickets: https://adelaidefringe.com.au/fringetix/elouise-eftos-australia-s-first-attractive-comedian-af2025
Type: Stand Up, Feminist, Endearing, Alluring
If you liked: Rhys Nicholson, Abbie Chatfield, Basic Instinct
4 STARS
Entering the space in a tightly fitting white dress, Elouise Eftos recreates that infamous scene from Basic Instinct, as she’s questioned over being Australia’s “first attractive comedian”. When it gets to…well, the moment…a Pulp Fiction inspired gag tells you exactly what you’re in for, and it’s a sweat inducing, rib-tickling delight. Eftos gives a well-tuned and extraordinarily solid performance that will make you wonder how this can possibly be her Adelaide Fringe debut.
Elouise Eftos is Australia’s First Attractive Comedian if you didn’t already know, but of course you must have. Eftos is sexy and she knows it, and she uses it to her advantage with hilarious results. One reciprocating gag was a highlight and, without giving it away, you’re either going to love or hate if you’re the one chosen for Eftos to play it on.
But wait, I hear you think, isn’t Eftos just demeaning the work of female comedians by flaunting her sexual appeal? To this, Eftos wants you to wake up and smell the Tall Poppy Syndrome. Dressed in a sparkling red dress that embodies it, she raises the question about why it’s such a bad thing to use one’s femininity to one’s advantage. And if you wonder if other high standing female comedians haven’t seen the joke, well Eftos has come with receipts.
A stellar Fringe debut in every sense of the word and one that is well worth seeing, Tall Poppy Syndrome be damned
Sexy video games are played throughout to target the patriarchy, the “normies”, and just as she assures us that straight men aren’t her target audience, the game puts them on the spot to truly test their worth – trust me, I was the guinea pig. It’s all very much tongue-in-cheek and sardonic, but there appears to be a true goal in making the patriarchy realise how much they’ve fallen from grace in their ogling. Why not go back, Eftos asks, to the cartoon times when men hit themselves over the head with a hammer while their eyes popped out of their head instead?
Between the segments, there is sometimes a sense of reciprocity and the middle section wanders as Eftos starts to explore the deeper meaning of her work. It eventually gets there, but could have had something a bit punchier and significantly timely in the finale.
The standing ovation given by the show’s ending was well-deserved and reflected Eftos’ true commanding presence of the stage and her entire audience. A stellar Fringe debut in every sense of the word and one that is well worth seeing, Tall Poppy Syndrome be damned.
Want more from the Adelaide Fringe Festival? Explore all the shows on offer this year here.
