Dylan Moran tuam gig 19th of June 2024

aldo50

I went to Dylan Moran gig last night. As previous reviewers have stated of other gigs it was a difficult watch. There were some funny statements from him but more akin to a drunk arts student trying to sound intelligent. I have seen him before in 2018 but he has gone downhill , a combination of drinking too much and being unprepared has made it a rip off for a price of 25 euro, local comedians would be better prepared. I hope he sorts himself out but continuing gigging with this shambolic venture is not going to help his legacy.

Catfeats89

Thanks for posting your perspective.
My understanding was that this Irish tour was intended to be “work in progress.” I have never seen (but have always wanted to see) a comedian’s work in progress performance to see how the material comes to be, gets crafted, evolves, etc. I’m not trying to question your experience, but am sincerely wondering if the lack of preparedness you mention could be attributed to new and untried material? Or new attempts at delivery? I have followed the concerns expressed by others in this forum and elsewhere (about shows in Ireland, the UK, New Zealand, etc) so I am aware of the various critiques around his being drunk on stage and the impact on Dylan’s performance. ( I don’t doubt there is an impact). But there are even some dissenting views on whether there is as much of an impact as everyone is (more recently) saying (“he was always like this”, “he always rambled”) so it is truly hard to know. Looking at his website I am assuming he has done a few of the Irish shows now—I wonder what others think?

EmmetSpiceland

I’d pay to see Dylan Moran ramble on while drunk. Probably more than I pay to see him ramble sober.

Not sure if there’s a comedy forum on here but that might be a better place to post about this, if you can find it.

suzy_2005ie

I enjoyed his gigs in Vicar Street earlier this year and in Galway City a few days ago and I had lots of laughs at both. We all have highs and lows in life. Give him a break. The title of the tour gives a good indication as to what it is about.

Oscar_Madison

Haven’t seen him since Vicar st- think that was 2019? He was good at the time but even then, the quality of the comedy was mixed - some LOL moments but probably fewer than I was expecting (and I’d be a “fan” of his ).

His appearance on Tommy Tiranans show earlier this year as a depressing watch - obviously reflecting the reviews in recent times - I hope he sees better days - at 25 squid a ticket I’d actually go just to see first hand what he’s like at present, but by many accounts he’s not in a good place right now- even his mate Tommy Tiernan wouldn’t disagree

aldo50

Yes, the title of the show is work in progress. I have seen work in progress shows for kevin bridges and frankly boyle. They would be prepared and gauging what material makes the cut for their tour by the reaction of the crowd. I didn't see this with this show. Its not having a go at him but if tommy tiernan says on national TV he is worried about him, maybe taking time to just address things may be a good thing to do. I have been a fan of his since I saw black books and his quirky manner. He seems a good guy who is giving of his time and advice to people starting out in the entertainment industry.

Exclamation Marc

The last two times I've seen him, once a headline show, once on a bill, he was beyond shambolic. I'd say over the last ten years, I've probably seen him 6 or 7 times and generally every second time, he's been appalling - and these have all been 'full shows'. Fool on me to be hoping for more with that record to be fair but I guess I hoped he'd turn it around. But he has been getting progressively worse with his shows and OPs post is unfortunately spot on.

The second half of his last full show consisted of him standing at a keyboard and just rambling utter nonsense. It was like word boggle and most of it didn't land or make any sense (and I was a big fan of the 00s Dylan Moran shtick). By his own admission, he can't play the keyboard so he just stood there and pressed random keys while rolling out random sentence after random sentence. Amusing for 5 minutes, painful for 45. If I was of a certain mind, I'd have asked for a refund because the audience were robbed that night.

There has been little to no story or skeleton to his shows anymore and to be honest, I will never see him again even if you gave me a ticket. I go to around 40+ comedy gigs every year and his recent show was by far the worst I've seen in the last few years.

And the last time I saw him on a mixed bill he broke down crying on stage reading a poem before spending 10 minutes on the piano schtick playing unfunny word boggle. It was so difficult to watch and I genuinely felt sorry for him.

It might be convenient (for Dylan Moran) to defend him due to the WIP tag but his full shows have been no better.

aldo50

The piano act was part of this show also so it looks like he is reworking the previous work in progress for this work in progress tour.

Stillill42

Poor old Dylan. He cracked me up the last time I saw him but that was maybe 5 years ago. Saw him a couple of months ago in Grogans, having a pint and taking surreptitious notes on the oddball characters in there. Sorry to hear it hasn't resulted in a successful show.

cheese sandwich

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122303380#Comment_122303380

Unlike Hughes, Moran was funny. I’ve seen him a number of times and he was never less than funny, although there’s no doubt the quality dipped as the years went on. Haven’t seen him in the last few years and I dont think I’d want to based on reviews.

I saw Sean Hughes a few years before he died and it was atrociously bad unfortunately

aldo50

I am sure the tour will sell out and be a success from that aspect as He is a big draw. However I thought the quality of material even for a WIP show wasn't at the level expected of his ability.

FoxyVixen

Seen him a few years ago at the Knocknarea Arena in Sligo. Think it was 2yrs ago? Could have been a bit longer.

I'd convinced my Mum and sister that it would be epic as I'd seen him before 15yrs ago when I lived in Australia. At the Australia gig, I left the venue with genuine pains in my cheeks from laughing so much.

At the Sligo gig though. It was god awful. It sounds like the same as his current gig. It was just random sentences being blurted out - but not in a Jimmy Carr haha kind of way. Just no rule or rhythm to what he was saying. A few laughs but my god they were few and far between. Then at the end he just seemed to partake in a genuine waffle with the front row which wasn't making any sense. People were walking out.

He'd mentioned at one point that he was seperated so i thought his gig was going to kick in then with a few funny jabs at divorce but nothing came of it.

It doesn't sound like he's gotten any better. It's such a pity because I felt like he was such a powerhouse of comedy when I saw him first.

suzy_2005ie

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122300937#Comment_122300937

You do realize the poem was a piss take …

Exclamation Marc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122312527#Comment_122312527

I'd almost be more worried about that as it wasn't even remotely funny or interesting. The crowd was dead silent bar a couple of awkward laughs when he did that at the show. So if it was a piss take... It bombed.

Catfeats89

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122312807#Comment_122312807

But —what was the poem? was this a joke poem? you said he broke down reading it…was this not a gag? was this actual crying? I am curious about all this as I plan on flying a great distance to see him in the UK in the Fall. I don't mind seeing a so-called "bad" show whatever definition we could conjure up for what a bad show entails. However I do have strong ethical concerns about sitting around watching someone —who isn't well and is not aware of their inability to perform —fall apart on stage which is why I am balking a bit at buying tickets. Someone posted some audio from his Vicar st. gig in May (was that the Gaza benefit?) on YT and I personally thought it sounded amusing and charming, although it sounded like he was putting on a tone of mock despair in some of the clips. So…I guess my question is: is this all a bit? The reality seems to be that more shows have been added to this tour and they are selling out at quite a clip; reviews of this week's Cork shows from others on the social media site (that shall not be named) range from poor to great…but I wouldn't say there are a lot of reviews, as opposed to the last tour. Certainly some speculation about alleged addiction and resultant behaviours which I am not sure is helpful (I work in healthcare and am wary of armchair diagnoses). Not sure what to make of all this…..although he has got us talking!

Oscar_Madison

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122315234#Comment_122315234

You’ve all the evidence you need to make a decision now - including what airline to book /not book

Oscar_Madison

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122312807#Comment_122312807

obviously people don’t find it funny - whilst some people will laugh at anything at a gig, audience silence in the main tells us a lot too - besides, even if it was rip-roaring, it was merely a glimpse of past glory and ability - nothing more, considering the rest of his show.
The “work in progress” aspect is cynical in my view -sounds like he’s making excuses for his performance which he knows is well below par but needs the dosh. I don’t think I’m too far off the mark.

Exclamation Marc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122315234#Comment_122315234

It was a poem that he said his dad wrote. It was unrelated to anything he said before or after it. Nothing numerous or witty about it. Just a poem. It was incredibly awkward in the venue as you could hear only a handful of awkward laughs. And to be clear, not awkward comedy. It was so strange.

suzy_2005ie

I can assure you that he did not break down and cry during the 'poem' I think it was a new rogue joke that failed. He turned that fake crying off fast. People love complaining about this period of his career. Makes them feel better about what they lack in their lives

Exclamation Marc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122318991#Comment_122318991

I can assure you he did as I was there. You don't even know what gig Im talking about 😂 Him being the best or worst comedian has utterly no impact on how I feel. Your post is arguably funnier than anything he did that evening to be fair so thanks for that 😂

Stillill42

I fervently hope Dylan is reading this thread. He could spin this into a full routine.

aldo50

He saw Bill Bailey make a career out of playing the keyboard badly accompanied by sporadic words and thought that beats creating new material . A genius move .

suzy_2005ie

Laughing right at you for thinking that i commented about a gig you assumed that I was not at. Thats a new one! -- Also ....Think I hit a nerve there 😉

Exclamation Marc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122319703#Comment_122319703

Lol, if you say so.

gwennyk78

..

afatbollix

All I can say is don’t go see this tour,

He’s in a bad place at the moment and it’s just not funny. It’s a sad puddle of a man who needs help not more money to drink away.

Showed up an hour late last night for 15 minutes then asked at the side of the stage was that enough to be told no keep going when we all really wanted it to be over. Lasted a couple more minutes before the MC ended it all for all our sakes.

I genuinely felt like I was an enabler to his health problems by paying for a ticket.

Oscar_Madison

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122662117#Comment_122662117

Where did you see him?
Obviously his woes have been well documented - very sad viewing of his interview with Tommy Tiernan earlier this year but I thought he might have turned a corner since.

Desperately sad . Hopefully some time in the future he’ll have more happiness than he does right now

BadTurtle

Saw him at Cyprus Ave earlier in the year and enjoyed it. No rhyme or reason to the set, and at times he was mumbling into his own midriff rather than to the audience, but even so there were more laughs per minute in his set half finished than your average comedians best work. He's just got a wonderful way with words, a mastery of figurative imagery.

That said, the whole thing was a long way from cohesive, and that pissed off some people in the crowd. Heard one lady (I'd be tempted to give her the name "Karen" by her tone) say the show was a disgrace and she wanted her money back. I was tempted to remind her she had paid for a work in progress show, but held my tongue. No point in arguing on subjective matters, particularly with the "let me see the manager types".

Exclamation Marc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122674334#Comment_122674334

I wouldn't expect much better in his full show. His last full show was utterly abysmal.

I'm glad you enjoyed it (everyone's comedy experience and expectations are different) but with all respect, I'd wonder what comedians you're seeing if you think the average comedian's best work is no better than Dylan Morans current rambling and mumbling shtick - it's really not. I've been to well over 100 comedy gigs in the last couple of years and he was the worst by a country mile.

BadTurtle

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122687892#Comment_122687892

I've seen plenty of the most popular comedians in Ireland, Dr Patronising. You seem to have made a point in your last post that you fundamentally don't understand: Comedy. Is. Subjective. If you're going to accuse me of knowing nothing about comedy, you can jog on.

I've seen Dara, Tommy, Alan Carr, Jimmy Carr, Bill Bailey, John Bishop, David O Doherty, Deirdre O Kane, Alison Spittle, Peter McGann, Shane Clifford, Tony Cantwell in the last 5 years. Is that enough, O Most High Comedy Zsar, or shall I keep going?

Exclamation Marc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122688534#Comment_122688534

If you read my post, which clearly you didn't, I said (and you quoted) "everyone's comedy expectations and experiences are different" so quite clearly I've acknowledged how subjective it is and everyone will take something different from it - that's the joy of comedy.

But whatever excuse of a show (or WIP) Dylan Moran is putting out now is not an above average show. By your own admission, it was a rambling mess (incohesive, talking to his midriff, no rhyme nor reason) and if that's better than the average comedians best show, it's not unreasonable to question the bar or what you're comparing it to. I saw him months ago and it was boggle comedy. Awful stuff.