Let me be truthful in the fact that there are some major *SPOILERS* ahead for Raven On, presented by Act/React and performed as part of Brisbane Comedy Festival 2019 at the Brisbane City Hall. Now that you’ve been warned, you can continue. Where does one start with Natalie Bochenski? Is it the entertaining use of powerpoint slides? The absolute love of popular culture? The fact that her humour is relatable and relevant? I’ll simply leave it with if you’re a Game of Thrones fan, and even if you’re not, you’re in for a real treat.
Game of Thrones is a popular show, and if you haven’t heard of it you may very well be living under a rock, but that’s okay because Natalie Bochenski can and will tell you all the ways in which you should start watching all available seven seasons as fast as humanly possible. So, spoilers you say? Bochenski demonstrates her intense devotion and knowledge of the series by rapping about everything that has currently happened, with backup powerpoint slides of course. As someone that is halfway through the first season, it’s safe to say I know a few things I did not before - but that’s all good and well, as I’m keen to keep watching as Bochenski’s passion for the show has simply fuelled my own.
It’s the pure imagination and thought that goes into this particular show that makes you forget you’re watching a comedy act and simply watching a woman who is clearly obsessed with Jon Snow, to the point of morphing her face on top of Daenerys Targaryen’s face in a clip where Snow calls her his ‘Queen’. Now that’s dedication. Not to mention a good old fashioned fan-fiction scenario where Bochenski pulls out a member of the audience only to cover his face with Snow’s and force him to read lines on the back of the cardboard cutout.
Bochenski uses slideshows as a way to emphasise her point, especially if that point includes why she is attracted to the brooding Snow or what makes a strong female character powerful. She even mentions throughout the show that she would like to do a show on how Xena: Warrior Princess is better than Buffy the Vampire Slayer or how she would like to write and collaborate with a family member, after making her quote a line from Game of Thrones of course. Bochenski lets us enjoy Game of Thrones for the sake of it.
The audience is ultimately given permission to geek out and have fun, and get excited for the small and very big things that occur in this epic series that touches on themes of war, politics and morality. Yes, she is donning a blonde wig and emulating Daenerys, and yes she has a love of Tintin and David Bowie in The Labyrinth - but the point is, who doesn’t? We all relate to being able to get excited over a fictional character or sad when that very character dies as part of a plotline. We even see video evidence of Bochenski on screen during the performance that show her heartbreak when these scenes really do occur.
It is the inner child in all of us that is excited by fantasy, sword fighting, love, drama and a bit of Snow with a cherry on top. It comes down to imagination, character dynamics and extensive world building and it is safe to say that Game of Thrones has made TV watching a hell of a lot more interesting, and we wouldn't be the same without it.
March 12-17
Brisbane City Hall, Brisbane Room
Joanna Letic