Farewell, possums! Barry Humphries says goodbye with final tour

Dame Edna
Dame Edna

Australia’s own beloved Barry Humphries, the comedian behind beloved Australian icons Sir Les Patterson and the most famous housewife in the world, Dame Edna Everage, will take his final bow on Australian stages.

His farewell tour, Eat Pray Laugh, will be directed by Simon Phillips and will hit stages in Canberra, Newcastle, Sydney, Melbourne, and the Gold Coast from June this year.

But fear not, possums, the characters themselves aren’t retiring. This will just be their last tour.

“Dame Edna insists that we do this final tour to farewell our many friends in Australia,” Humphries says. “She has toured the world since the mid 1950s and she is ready to kick off her heels and tend to her gladiolas.”

Dame Edna (who makes an “orgasmic appearance in Act Two” of the show, after Humphries and friends take on Act One) says the show is an all-singing, all-dancing spectacular that promises to empower audiences as she meditates on the big issues of gender, ethnicity, and climate change.

“You will see me at the height of my powers, taking you on a wonderful spiritual journey you’ll never forget,” she says.

“I’m not saying my show will heal you, but you’ll certainly leave the theatre feeling considerably better for the experience.”

Tickets will be available from Friday 30 March at http://www.showbiz.com.au

Cassie Tongue

Cassie is a theatre critic and arts writer in Sydney, and was the deputy editor of AussieTheatre. She has written for The Guardian, Time Out Sydney, Daily Review, and BroadwayWorld Australia. She is a voter for the Sydney Theatre Awards.

Cassie Tongue

One thought on “Farewell, possums! Barry Humphries says goodbye with final tour

  • just saw this show in Canberra – too bad that Barry didn’t stick with Dame Edna all the way. The racist crap in the beginning made me regret buying the tickets!!

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