In May, Time of the Month made it’s way to Irish shores and has had two hugely successful nights since! The door was well and truly opened to our new Dublin home, Generator Hostels, where we were welcomed with warmth, support and energy by an incredible audience. Both nights brought a selection of new and experienced female comics to Smithfield for the first time, to share experiences and share a laugh.
Playtime is our workshop taster for girls to learn more about the comedy industry, share ideas and play games. Co-ordinated by our resident MC Aine Gallagher, playtime is a safe space for women to create, learn, move and express themselves. Not to mention our wonderful guest speakers. Funny Women’s founder, Lynne Parker spoke about her journey to starting up Funny Women and her insights in to how the comedy industry has changed (or not changed) over the years. We spoke about the difference in male and female humour, played improv games and discussed how comedy is written for TV.
Emily O’Callaghan also embraced us with her knowledge of the comedy industry. As the coordinator for the all-female line up of comedians on The Hazel Wood stage at Electric Picnic, Emily was a wiz with information on how to get booked into comedy shows, how to deal with criticism and the best way to communicate with other producers.
Showtime, on both occasions, welcomed a variety of guests from all over the world. The evenings were MC’d by the wonderful Aine Gallagher and headlined by incredible Irish talent, 2017 Funny Women Awards finalist Ashlee Bentley, Eve Darcy and Grace Mulvey, Sharon Mannion and Lisa Casey and as always welcomed 12 other comedians to try out new material or try stand up for the first time. Time of the Month creates a melting pot of comedy. If ever there was a time to see that there is not just one type of female humour it’s Time of the Month. The show brought a variety of themes and styles of comedy, from, our general “Irishisms”, to the Me Too and Time’s Up movements, to leather jackets and circumcision (who knew they went together?) and even the occasional Ed Sheeran joke thrown in there for good measure.
But, nothing compares to our real pride in the night and the reason we do this. The women who use this night as an opportunity to try stand up for the first time. Each one was fantastic, strong and uninhibited and everyone was thrilled to watch them kill it!
Time of the Month is an opportunity to be embraced. We all have a voice and we all have a sense of humour. Let’s use it. Let’s express ourselves in a place where we can be rewarded, not shamed. Thanks to our wonderful and supportive audience that is certainly possible.
Time of the Month will be travelling around Ireland over the next few months, landing in The Black Gate in Galway next on the 19th of July. We will be welcoming back Lisa Casey as a guest speaker for Playtime where she will share her experience of winning Irish Comedian of the Year and touring Australia. We will also be supporting local talent with our hilarious headliner Breda Larkin.
Tickets are currently on sale for our Galway show on Eventbrite
Tickets are €10 for Playtime and it’s €6 to go to Showtime an audience member. The €10 also covers entry to Showtime afterwards.
For more information or for a five minute slot at showtime email fwir@funnywomen.com
Photo Credit: Anastasia Gulakova. Instagram: lifes_peachy
