University of New South Wales Revues

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A revue poster from 2006.
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A revue poster from 2006.

Sydney's University of New South Wales plays host to numerous comedy revues each year. Of these, the largest are Med Revue, Law Revue, and CSE Revue. Each revue features comedy sketches, songs and videos written and performed by students, usually commenting satirically on current affairs, dating and student life. Other revues have existed on campus throughout the years including FBE Revue (for Faculty of the Built Environment students) and the new Arts & Social Sciences Revue staged in 2006. AUJS Revue is a revue run by the Australasian Union of Jewish Students and made a return in 2006.


Contents

[edit] Style and structure

Revues are performed by a cast of between 15 and 60 people, with a live band. The cast is supported by a large group of writers, technical crew, video crew, choreographers, costumers and front of house.

The revues follow a standard format with little variation. The show is given a parody title, typically taken from a recently-released film. In some cases, the title sets an overarching theme for the show, but since the shows are written by many authors the theme is not reflected in all of the material.

The show will typically begin with a full-cast dance and musical number in which the words to a popular song are changed for the purposes of satire (in the tradition of "Weird Al" Yankovic). From here, the show will consist principally of short comedy sketches on subjects such as study, dating, national politics and parodies of television programmes. Musical numbers bookend the interval and close the show. Other segments include choral and a cappella numbers, dances, a band number and short videotaped segments. In between items, one-liners are delivered as voice-overs.å

The role of video has steadily increased in recent years. The 2001 Med Revue, Medicator, was the first revue to dedicate substantial time and resources to video segments. The 2003 CSE Revue began with a video sketch based on the film The Matrix, incorporating sophisticated CGI effects.

In most revues, structured audience interaction is minimal. Revues typically run between two and three hours' duration.

Operationally, each of the three revues is a club affiliated to the UNSW Student Guild and subject to the latter's oversight. Revues retain their institutional memory through 'old revuers', participants who come back year after year. Former directors are often invited back to perform voice-overs and critique shows before they go to stage.


[edit] UNSW Medical Revue

The UNSW Medical Revue, known as Med Revue, began in 1975 with a show called Rumpleforeskin. Originally the domain of medical students only, the revue is now produced principally by students from other faculties. Nonetheless, Med Revues have continued to poke fun at medical topics.

Med Revue was originally held in the Physics Theatre, before moving to the nearby Science Theatre in 1992. In 1999, the show was held in the university union's Roundhouse building, an innovation the tech crew have undertaken never to repeat.

Med Revue rehearsals begin in March. The show plays for one week in May.

UNSW Medical Revues
1975 Rumpleforeskin 1976 Pandemonia, or Thanks for the Mammary! 1977 It's Epidemic! 1978 Gross Encounters of the Turd Kind 1979 The Sound of Mucus 1980 My Brilliant Diahorrea
1981 A Wet Summer Night's Dream 1982 Merry Maladies: What's up Doc? 1983 ET: The Extra Testicle 1984 Doctopussy 1985 All Crotches Great & Small 1986 Twilight Moan
1987 Dark Side Of The Toast 1988 Gastro Boy 1989 The Satanic Nurses 1990 Zen Cabbage 1991 Presumed Impotent 1992 Herniator 2
1993 Missing In Traction 1994 All the President's Phlegm 1995 The Symptoms 1996 Glitter 1997 12 Junkies 1998 South Cark
1999 Pre-Millennium Tension 2000 American Booty 2001 Medicator 2002 Stool Wards Episode Poo: Attack Of The Colons 2003 8 Inch 2004 The Cat With The Fat
2005 Mary's Poppin 2006 Thrush Hour


[edit] UNSW Arts & Social Sciences Revue

In August 2006, the Studio Four Society and the Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences staged the university's inaugural Arts & Social Sciences Revue. The show was entitled It's Time, a reference to a 1972 election campaign slogan. Theatrically, the show was a mix of plot progression and stand-alone sketch comedy, with a smaller cast of 18 actors. In line with the studies of Arts & Social Sciences students, the show focused on modern Australian life.

Organisationally, the show was managed by one director, two producers and 12 team heads who oversaw individual departments, such as design, multimedia, sponsorship, writing and wellbeing.


[edit] UNSW Law Revue

Law Revue began a year after Med Revue with The Assault and Battery Powered Show in 1976. At present it is held in the Science Theatre.

In addition to material that speaks to the student experience, Law Revue contains a great deal of legal and political satire, as well as a high proportion of television and celebrity parodies.

Where other revues try their best to avoid politics, Law Revue embraces the subject. In recent years, Law Revue has been a vehicle for opposition to mandatory detention, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and voluntary student unionism. The titles often reference politicians and current events, such as the investigation of Lionel Murphy and the Sydney Olympics. Some of the references are linked in the table below.

Illegally Bombed, the 2002 Law Revue, enjoyed the largest audiences of any revue at UNSW, selling out three of its four nights and being seen by over 3000 people.

Law Revue rehearsals begin in late July. The show plays for one week in August.

UNSW Law Revues
1976 The Assault and Battery Operated Show 1977 As Crime Goes Bi 1978 Don't Give me the Writz 1979 Justice You Like It 1980 Evicta: featuring "Don't Lie for me on Subpoena" 1981 A Penny for your Torts
1982 If They Could Sue Me Now 1983 Commission Impossible 1984 Rebel without a Clause 1985 Gone With the Breise 1986 The Good, The Bad and The Unsworth 1987 Police State Your Business or Rollover Trimbole
1988 Witless for the Prosecution 1989 Simply Inadmissible 1990 Sex, Bribes and Magistrates 1991 QC Hammer: U Can't Judge This! 1992 Republic Enemy 1993 Juristic Perk
1994 Faheywatch 1995 Bombe Perignon 1996 Coalition: Impossible 1997 So Sue Me Street 1998 Godzillaw 1999 The Last Judgment
2000 Bored of the Rings 2001 Dude, Where's Bob Carr? 2002 Illegally Bombed featuring Detention Island 2003 Midget John's Diary 2004 Iraqi Horror Picture Show 2005 The Chronicles of Canberra: The Liar, The Bitch & The Xenophobe
2006 Hostile Powers: International Plan for Misery


[edit] UNSW Computer Science and Engineering Revue

In 2002, the two major revues were joined by a third, established by students in the School of Computer Science and Engineering (CSE). The first show, appropriately enough, was entitled Minority Revue. CSE Revue is held in the smaller Fig Tree Theatre and so the show plays for two weeks rather than one, and prospective cast members must audition in order to take part due to the limited dressing room and stage space. For the most part, CSE Revue steers clear of political humour/satire due to the show's timing proximity to Law Revue.

The revue has a strong focus on video production values and significant use of CGI. In recent times some of the people and resources from the CSE Revue Video/VFX teams have been recruited by Med and Law Revues to help with the production of their videos, and in 2003/2004 some were recruited by the university's School of Computer Science and Engineering to produce a television advertisement.

Production-wise CSE Revue is highly structured compared to its Med and Law counterparts. Aside from the directors and producers there is an organisational (Orgs) team which consists of heads of smaller teams which cover all aspects of the show and its production, such as scripts, tech, web administration, promotions, sales and social. Most decisions governing the running of the revue are made at the Orgs level.

CSE Revue enjoys the support of a number of tech firms, including software giants Microsoft and Google, as well as Australian firms such as Whitesmiths, NICTA and Gelato UNSW.

CSE Revue recruits members during O-week (late February/early March) with rehearsals beginning in July. The show runs for two weeks in September.

UNSW Computer Science & Engineering Revues
2002 Minority Revue 2003 Revue Reloaded 2004 Star Key and Hash 2005 Sin CSE 2006 The teXt Files: Close Encounters of the Nerd Kind


[edit] AUJS Revue

The first AUJS Revue was organised and directed by Geoff Sirmai[1] in 1984. It was called "Broadway Funny Nose". The revues received reasonable success for both the UNSW and general Jewish communities and were a chance to bring together Jews (and often non-Jews) of all denominations and affiliations. The AUJS revue became a training ground for many people who went on to have significant roles in Law and Med revues through the 1990s. Many AUJS revue alumni[2] also went on to both Kosher TheatreSports [3] which was setup by Geoff Sirmai, the 'general' Kosher Theatresports community as well as directing and producing their own shows and/or working with theatrical names both here and in the US.

Unfortunately, the early 2000s saw a downturn in the strength of AUJS as an organisation which led to the discontinuation of AUJS revue, which was last held in 2003. A group of AUJS revue alumni heard of this in early 2006 and encouraged and supported the existing AUJS NSW executive to form a 2006 AUJS revue[4], now named - Diaspora Housewives which ran in October 2006.

AUJS Revues
1984 Broadway Funny Nose 1985 Katz 1986 The Challah Purple 1987 Little Shop of Schnorrers 1988 Three Men and a Bagel 1989 Licence to Spiel / 21 Flood St
1990 Teenage Mutant Ninja Rabbis 1991 Spartuchus 1992 Hook 1993 Miss Shugina 1994 Foreskins and a Funeral 1995 A Fish Called Gefillte
1996 Mishna Impossible 1997 Shema Wars 1998 The Full Montefiore 1999 Austin Payos - The Spy that Schtupped Me 2000 X-Mensch 2001 Revue Live: Off Broadway
2002 Debbie Does Double Bay 2003 8 Moyel 2006 Diaspora Housewives


[edit] "Best of" Revues

"Best of" revues typically combine selected material from previous shows, sometimes updated or adapted to take into account the intervening period of time. A "Best of" show, featuring material from both Med Revues and Law Revues from the years 1984-1989, was held in the Bondi Pavilion in 1990. The show was called A Fabulous Set of Steak Knives. A "Best of" called Heart Rate High: the Bex Years of Our Lives was held at the Figtree Theatre in 1996, but covered material from Med Revues only from 1990-1995. In 1998, a show was put on by revuers off-campus called Dead Fish are Fun, which featured some material from past Law and Med Revues, as well as original material. In 2001, a "Best of" show called Comedy for the Chemical Generation was held at the Figtree theatre covering material from Med Revues 1996-2000. This was sometimes dubbed "Best of Med III", despite the fact that the first "Best of" covered both shows.

In 2006, Law & Orderlies, a "Best of" show covering both Med and Law Revue, was held at the Figtree Theatre. The bulk of material was drawn from Revues from 2000-2005, however the show also featured sketches from Med Revue 1975, Law Revue 1989, and Law Revue 1998.


[edit] Other sketch comedy shows on campus

Other revues at the university are held from time to time: students from New College, the Faculty of the Built Environment and the university's Buddhist club organise smaller-scale shows. Sketch comedy shows have also been hosted by the New South Wales University Theatrical Society (NUTS), the UNSW comedy club Studio Four, and other groups. A rival medical-student revue called UNSW Medshow (or sometimes Med Show) was established in 2001 by former Med Revuer Neil Jeyasingham, and has been held annually since. The Australian Graduate School of Management (AGSM), which is part of the university, has put on revues in the past (notably 1997 and 1998). They are not widely advertised outside the AGSM community and are normally held for one night only.


[edit] UNSW Revue alumni

[edit] References

  1. ^ Geoff Sirmai
  2. ^ AUJS Alumni
  3. ^ Kosher TheatreSports
  4. ^ [1]


[edit] See Also

Revues are also held at:

[edit] External links

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