Nick Cody in I Know Nathan Schradle…(and Cory Earhart too)
I must admit that I had a few expectations going to see Nick Cody in I Know Nathan Schradle…(and Cory Earhart too). The advertising with its photo of Nick in a wacky, high energy pose and an invite to “drink with him and have a blast” suggested jokes and tales about debauchery and excess. It included a guy named Corey in the title who could have been that MySpace Corey at a glance. What eventuated was an hour of wonderful storytelling with only passing mentions to partying but plenty of life’s other adventures.
The show was a series of stories from Nick’s life thus far with a number of his opinions on various issues thrown in for good measure. A number of tales came from his overseas traveling which despite lacking a little chronological details were interesting as well as amusing. We also heard tales from his domestic life which revealed some a few embarrassing details about his girlfriend (who was working the door), his parents (who were in the audience) and workmates (some also in the crowd).
It was interesting to see that he actually covered the material mentioned in his Festival blurb, a rarity for a straight stand up show whose submission was lodged far ahead of the actual show. By his own admission this approach was problematic in that he forced himself to use the material regardless of its strength but this was only a small price to pay for a solid collection of tales that kept the punters laughing. Using the same philosophy, he was was forced to explain who the two other gents in the title were, two colourful Americans who were described in glorious detail. These characters were the source of great humour and despite his initial flimsy excuse for using them in the title were a great inclusion to the show.
There were points in the show where his opinions were not particularly PC and he sometimes went into graphic detail. This may have been uncomfortable for sensitive souls, but he had a likable persona which allowed us to cut him some slack for dragging the tone down. Nick ventured into similar territory when employing stereotypes which he was happy to exploit for laughs. He employed a cheeky way of covering is butt by explaining that he was merely reporting largely held views which was amusing at first but degraded into hypocrisy as it was repeated used.
Nick was a brilliant storyteller and kept us glued to his every word. He wasn’t particularly expressive in a physical sense, preferring to simply stand behind the microphone throughout, but his vocal delivery was interesting and enthusiastic enough to carry the stories by words alone. It was a wonderful way to spend an hour in the company of a new friend.
Visit the Fringe Website for booking details.