The man behind the comedy walk.
Xavier Toby imagines a world in 2113 on the brink of social collapse. His faux-historical walking tour When we were idiots invites punters to explore the reality of now from a skewed 2113 perspective. Dressed as a giant penguin, Toby guides curious punters through a world 100 years in the future, frozen at its 2013 consumerist peak.
Toby hasn’t always been a penguin.
He used to be an engineer before embracing the life of a humourist and columnist. Over the last three years Toby has been performing one-man shows to sell out crowds through Australia, England, Scotland and Hong Kong.
What did you want to be when you grew up?
The world’s first comedian astronaut. Half that dream is still alive, and one day soon I do hope to become a fully qualified astronaut.
When did you know you would work in the arts?
I’m quite a logical person, and when I realised in my early twenties that we only get one go at life, I decided to try for a career that wasn’t just bearable, but would make me happy. Every day I then wasted not pursuing that, seemed to me the pinnacle of stupidity.
When I left my engineering job, I had decided that I would rather fail and have nothing, than waste my life without even trying for what I wanted most.
How would you describe your work to a complete stranger?
When people laugh, they’re more likely to listen to whatever you say next. After I’ve got them laughing, I try to share something that’s worth hearing not just because it’s funny.
Is there a mission to your work?
I believe that nobody on this planet is stupid, mean or evil. It’s just that they don’t know enough. Through my work I try to open people up to thinking more deeply about different issues, but that only comes after we’ve had a laugh. It’s comedy. It needs to be funny before it’s anything else.
What’s the first thing career related you usually do each day?
Write down the jokes and my points my subconscious has figured out while I’ve been asleep. Or eat some strawberries. Or have a wee. Sometimes two at once, but never all three. That was a very messy morning, and the strawberries tasted very strange.
What’s the one thing – piece of equipment, toy, security blanket, – you can’t work without?
Clothing. If I were onstage naked that would be a different performance entirely. I doubt I would be paid as much for that show, but becoming a stripper has been suggested more than once, the first time by a comedy club owner.
At the time I’d only been doing comedy a few months, and she told me, ‘You’re a nice guy and you’re not bad looking. But you’re a terrible comedian. I’d pay to see to strip long before I’d ever pay to hear you say anything ever again. Actually you should pay me, after inflicting that garbage on my ears.’
What gets you fired up?
When politicians and the media tell us their opinion like it’s fact, and then makes anyone who actually shares the facts feel like they’re the one who isn’t based in reality. So many things are happening daily, especially during this election campaign, that make me feel like I don’t want to be part of this world anymore.
In a hundred years, if the human race still exists, I think they’ll look back on 2013 society and wonder how and why we were so stupid and got it all so wrong.
What are the top three skills you need in this industry?
Hard work
Self-confidence
Luck
(I realise that technically only one of these is a skill)
How do you know when you missed the mark?
Nobody laughs. Then you overhear someone whispering an apology to their friend for bringing them to the show.
Where do you plan to be in three years time?
Doing exactly the same thing but hopefully better and to more people.
The When we were idiots comedy walk meets at the Pie Tin, 1a Brown Street (Just off King Street) in Newtown on various dates throughout September.
The Sydney Fringe Festival runs from 6-29 September. Most tickets are under $30 and are on sale now through the official Sydney Fringe Festival website or by calling (02) 9020 69 80.
A comprehensive guide to programmed events is also available on the website. Events can be searched for through genre, location, venue or date.
(Pictured: Xavier Toby)
