Best Comedy Events in Canberra

Comedy in Canberra is not loud about itself, which is exactly why locals like it. The jokes are tucked into places you might already know for music or film, and then suddenly you are watching a comic destroy in a back room while someone orders another pinot at the bar. The scene feels small enough that faces start to become familiar, but big enough that you can catch everything from tight stand up to campy, chaotic cult cinema on any given run of shows.

If you care about stand up, you start at Smith's Alternative. Smith's Open Mic Comedy is where new comics test unhinged ideas next to surprisingly polished regulars, and the room will absolutely let you know if a joke lands or dies. It is cozy, a bit scruffy in a good way, and full of people who actually listen. Perfect if you like your comedy intimate and a little risky rather than packaged for a big theatre crowd.

At the other end of the spectrum you have bigger comedy events in Canberra popping up at spots like The Playhouse and the precinct around Lawson Crescent in Acton. Touring shows like Milo Edwards: Decade and Trophy Boys bring that sharper, worked over club material, with comics who have done the miles and are here to prove it. These rooms draw a mixed crowd, from office groups to hardcore comedy nerds who have already memorised half the set from podcasts.

Comedy here is not just a mic and a stool either. You get cross over nights where drag, film and stand up blur together. Desperately Seeking Susan under the Cult Classics with Venus Mantrap banner is exactly the kind of campy, joke heavy screening locals rave about, where the movie is only half the show and the host is roasting everything from the costumes to the crowd. Even K fest, a Korean cultural festival, pulls in its own offbeat humour and playful performances, which fits the city perfectly, slightly nerdy, very self aware.

Here is a quick hit list of where to find some of the best comedy in Canberra right now:

• Smith's Alternative, Civic: open mic chaos, local comics, low key genius in a tiny room.
• The Playhouse, Canberra Theatre Centre: touring shows like Milo Edwards: Decade and Trophy Boys, polished sets and bigger laughs.
• Lawson Crescent, Acton: special comedy events and performances when bigger acts roll through.
• Cult Classics with Venus Mantrap: comedy drenched film nights such as Desperately Seeking Susan, for people who like their jokes with sequins.
• K fest: Korean cultural festival with playful, offbeat moments that keep things light and funny.