So You're a Man
Encyclopedia
So You're a Man were a five-man comedy troupe, who performed in the mid-90s in both New Zealand and Australia. Members were Bret McKenzie
, Jemaine Clement
, Taika Waititi
, actor Carey Smith and theatre director David Lawrence. They met as members of the Drama Club at Victoria University of Wellington
, (where Clement, Waititi and Lawrence were studying theatre and film, and McKenzie classics and music) and first appeared as a quintet in a segment of a show called 'Bodyplay', conceived and directed by Duncan Sarkies. 'So You're A Man' premiered at the Basement Theatre in Auckland in May 1996, played a sell-out season at BATS Theatre in Wellington in October/November 1996, and then a month at the Last Laugh in Melbourne, Australia in March/April 1997, with one-off performances and university Orientation gigs in between. The show was a 1950s-style mockumentary guide to coping with manhood, covering such topics as proper urinal ettiquete, interactions with women, facial hair, personal grooming and how to find the clitoris. The five actors performed in flesh-coloured 'nudie-suits' and all played the guitar.
This group was a precursor to both The Humourbeasts
and Flight of the Conchords
. The group has been mentioned in a number of media articles about the Flight of the Conchords, in both the New York Times and Sydney Morning Herald. After the Melbourne comedy festival, where they played on the same bill as Simon Pegg, Ed Byrne, Tommy Tiernan and Peepolykus, the group broke up to pursue other interests.
Bret McKenzie
Bret Peter Tarrant McKenzie is a comedian, actor, musician and producer, best known for being one half of the Grammy Award winning musical comedy duo Flight of the Conchords along with Jemaine Clement....
, Jemaine Clement
Jemaine Clement
Jemaine Clement is a New Zealand comedian, actor and musician, best known as one half of the musical comedy duo Flight of the Conchords along with Bret McKenzie.-Early life:...
, Taika Waititi
Taika Waititi
Taika Waititi , also known as Taika Cohen, is a New Zealand-born film director, writer, painter, comedian and actor named as one of Varietys "ten new directors to watch" in 2007....
, actor Carey Smith and theatre director David Lawrence. They met as members of the Drama Club at Victoria University of Wellington
Victoria University of Wellington
Victoria University of Wellington was established in 1897 by Act of Parliament, and was a former constituent college of the University of New Zealand. It is particularly well known for its programmes in law, the humanities, and some scientific disciplines, but offers a broad range of other courses...
, (where Clement, Waititi and Lawrence were studying theatre and film, and McKenzie classics and music) and first appeared as a quintet in a segment of a show called 'Bodyplay', conceived and directed by Duncan Sarkies. 'So You're A Man' premiered at the Basement Theatre in Auckland in May 1996, played a sell-out season at BATS Theatre in Wellington in October/November 1996, and then a month at the Last Laugh in Melbourne, Australia in March/April 1997, with one-off performances and university Orientation gigs in between. The show was a 1950s-style mockumentary guide to coping with manhood, covering such topics as proper urinal ettiquete, interactions with women, facial hair, personal grooming and how to find the clitoris. The five actors performed in flesh-coloured 'nudie-suits' and all played the guitar.
This group was a precursor to both The Humourbeasts
The Humourbeasts
The Humourbeasts, composed of Jemaine Clement and Taika Cohen, were a comedy duo from Wellington. They received New Zealand's highest comedy accolade, the Billy T Award, in 1999....
and Flight of the Conchords
Flight of the Conchords
Flight of the Conchords are a New Zealand-based comedy duo composed of Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement. The duo's comedy and music became the basis of a BBC radio series and then an American television series, which premiered in 2007 on HBO, also called Flight of the Conchords.They were named...
. The group has been mentioned in a number of media articles about the Flight of the Conchords, in both the New York Times and Sydney Morning Herald. After the Melbourne comedy festival, where they played on the same bill as Simon Pegg, Ed Byrne, Tommy Tiernan and Peepolykus, the group broke up to pursue other interests.
Sources
- http://www.nzonscreen.com/person/jermaine-clement/biography
- http://www.hwwilson.com/Currentbio/cover_bios/cover_bio_3_08.htm
- http://www.conchords.net/2007/06/09/the-new-york-times-interviews-fotc