Chris Rock - No Apologies tour: Sydney Entertainment Centre, Saturday August 9

Chris Rock - No Apologies tour: Sydney Entertainment Centre, Saturday August 9
Review by Mawunyo Gbogbo

As soon as it was announced that ‘America’s funniest man’ Chris Rock would be performing in Australia, there was no question in my mind that I would go and see him. The comedian would be touring the nation for the very first time. And it’s been more than three years since his last stand-up tour. I was devastated when tickets to his two shows at the State theatre sold out within a few hours and, I must say, a little surprised. I didn’t realise Chris Rock had such a massive following here in Australia.

I was first in line when tickets for his third and final Sydney show went on sale soon afterwards. It’s a good thing I made the effort because the Entertainment Centre was packed on the night with thousands of people showing up to see the multi-award winning entertainer. An MC welcomed the audience, announcing that this was the biggest crowd for a comedian in Sydney.

I was very interested to see how an Australian audience would react to Chris Rock’s brand of humour, which is often punctuated by controversial, but comical references to race.

Stand-up comedian Mario Joyner got the crowd going at the start of the night as the support act. The crowd took to him well as he satirised the apparent technological advances to hit society such as blocking caller ID on mobile phones, a feature designed to eliminate another feature. Then the lights dimmed and the audience cheered in anticipation as Chris Rock took to the stage wearing a sharp green suit.

He began the show by lamenting the lack of black people in Sydney and asking how we managed to pull that off given Australia is a penal colony. The crowd roared with laughter. The laughter was a little more subdued when the comedian raised the issue of Australia’s treatment of its indigenous population.

After his warm-up routine, Chris Rock launched into a two-hour-long skit, covering topics as diverse as politics, the Olympics and sex. Nothing was off limits. He joked that the US Presidential candidate Barack Obama’s biggest obstacle in claiming the Presidency is his black wife. ‘I don’t think a black woman can be first lady… too much shutting up… she’d say you ain’t President… we President! ...I want Keke to be Secretary of defence… she can fight.’

He also spoke about whether or not a white person can use the N-word. The answer to this question is of course no. But he gave one specific set of circumstances in which a person may be able to get away with it. You’ll have to buy tickets to his next show to find that one out.

The 43-year-old has been quoted as saying he never does a live show unless he has something new to say. True to his word, fans were treated to an onslaught of fresh material in a satisfying routine in which he didn’t take a single break, not even to have a sip of water.
There were many highlights throughout the night. The comedian had the attentive and responsive crowd on side and was treated to a host of laughs, but there were a few boos when he named National Rugby League player Willie Mason to illustrate one of his analogies. Imagine if he had have mentioned Sonny Bill Williams! Every now and then, a punter would yell something out, but Chris Rock simply ploughed on with his script. There wasn’t a great deal of interaction with the audience - he just had so much material to get through.
I was on a high when we left the Entertainment centre only to arrive home to learn that a King of comedy, Bernie Mac, had died of pneumonia at the age of 50. Chris Rock told Black Entertainment Television, ‘Bernie Mac was one of the best and funniest comedians to ever live, but that was the second best thing he did. Bernie was one of the greatest friends a person could have.’

Although tickets to Chris Rock’s show were quite pricey, I believe it was worth every cent. In a day and age when saying the wrong thing can spell the end of your career, it’s refreshing to watch a comedy show in which no punches are pulled. Chris Rock’s ‘No Apologies’ tour was definitely good value for money and I would go and see him again in a heartbeat.

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