Ivan Aristeguieta: Piñata
The Umbrella Revolution, Garden of Unearthly Delights
Anyone who has ever tried to learn another language will tell you that humour is the hardest part to grasp, and how easy it is to lose the gist of a joke in translation. So, is it possible to be a comic in two languages? In 2012 Ivan Aristeguieta decided to find out, and has made seven appearances at the Fringe since his English language debut.
Tuesday night shows are always a tough gig for Fringe performers, but such is Aristeguieta’s broad appeal, he drew a solid crowd with many repeat attendees from the English and Spanish speaking worlds. Without wishing to reveal to much of his content, Aristeguieta is at his best when he reveals how humans are similar (getting over breakups, how spending time with your mum is viewed differently by people over your lifetime) and yet so very different in small ways (the piñata song that brings Spanish and Portuguese speaking people together, versus the much ruder aussie equivalent). He moves from the early origins of the piñata (who knew it started life in China?) to politics, parent/child relationships and everything in between with warmth and and energy. Bum holes get a bit of a serve too, but it’s okay because they are still politically on the playing field. Aristeguieta’s romantic history also proves fertile territory for stand-u, and cites the Bachelor as an excellent way to weed out unsuitable Tinder dates. However – if his present love does not extend to Fringe 2021 season (let’s hope it does though!), could it be Aristeguieta as Australia’s Bachelor that year? Nice accent, tick. Charming, tick. Sense of humour, tick tick. He’d loathe the idea, but think of all the potential material…
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