Simply put, Canberra comedian Juliet Moody is a woman of action.
After starting the highly successful charity comedy gala Fearless in 2016, Moody has been addressing the insidious issues of domestic and gender-based violence through sharing the gift of laughter and comedy, and raising money for worthy causes while she’s at it.
Born from the desire to further her work in that space, Moody’s latest venture, CanBra Comedy Gala, will see the local comedy community unite to support the Canberra Rape Crisis Centre.
Moody told Canberra Daily the idea to start a second charity gala came from their desire to expand on the achievements of the Fearless Comedy Gala.
“We’d long had a desire to assist them with a targeted event, and the work they do fits really well with what we’re wanting to achieve by using comedy to shape community support.”
She said the name was a fun play on words, but also a way of shining light on some of the difficulties women face in both society and in the performing arts community.
“We were all deeply disturbed by the news of Eurydice Dixon in Melbourne.
“There were calls from all across Australian and the world, wanting to do things to support women in the comedy community, and I guess this was a real tangible way for the Canberra comedy community to get behind and support the cause and the Canberra Rape Crisis Centre (CRCC), who are on the front line dealing with this,” she said.
Unlike Fearless, Moody said CanBra’s lineup is comprised solely of local artists, including award-winning comedic group Sweat Pits, Chris Ryan, Tom Gibson, Moody’s Sparrow-Folk, Danny Bensley, Emo Parsonson, Anthony Tomic and more. This was a deliberate decision to highlight the wonderful talent right on our doorstep.
“What’s unique about our scene is that we are still a small, tightknit community.
“Because this is a targeted event trying to support a localised charity and things that are happening in the community, we wanted to show it was our Canberra comedy community who are standing together.
“Whenever there’s a call out for a cause like this, the local comics are very generous in giving their time; it’s a great testament to Canberra and the wonderful people we have living here,” she said.
This gala caps off what’s been a big year for Moody. Along with her work in comedy, she was also nominated as a finalist in the ACT Australian of the Year Local Hero Award 2019.
“I was quite overwhelmed to be recognised in that way, especially when you look at many of the great people involved in that process.
“It was also wonderful confirmation of the work we’ve been doing with Fearless that it’s been making a difference in the community,” she said.
The team at Fearless have been successful to the point that Moody said they’ve now received requests from other cities and regional areas.
“We’ve been talking with regional and other major cities, working with them to find ways we can take the Fearless message to other parts of the country as well.”
CanBra won’t just be a night of laughs, as all the proceeds go towards the CRCC. Group tickets for 4 are priced at $32 each.
“All the artists in the lineup will wear a bra on stage in solidarity recognising the struggles women face; we’re really excited because everyone’s jumped on board and we’re encouraging our audience to wear a bra too,” Moody said.
So grab a ticket, bring your friends, wear a bra over your clothes, and strap in for a night of laughs.
The CanBra Comedy Gala is on Saturday 24 November 7.30pm at The Street Theatre, City West; thestreet.org.au
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