MICF: Lessons with Luis

Lessons With Luis: Why didn’t someone tell me about these guys when they were at the Fringe last year?

Never has awkward been so brilliant, and I dare any show to have me grinning so inanely.

Famoucity! is gloriously atrocious as Luis, his dad, Len, and little brother, Luelin, teach us about making movies, the three acting emotions and just how great cats really are.

Directed by Justin Hamilton, there’s so much more going on than just laughs and eyesore 80s jumpers. With no punchlines (ok, there are two punchlines), no self-reflection and no swearing, this is character comedy so perfect that it’s almost not funny. Only almost.

They don’t have many shows left and can only squeeze 80 lucky souls in each night. See these three before they are forced into big rooms.

Other MICF shows, if you want to be as good as Luis, Len and Luelin, you need to sing more songs about cats, write more stories about cats and make cat badges.

I wrote Luis a letter.

Dear Luis

Cats are so the best pets and the best animal and they are just the best of everything!

I love cats as much as you do and would love to have one of your cat badges; I’d wear it all the time, especially to opening nights.

I also think that your show is the absolute best thing at the Comedy Festival; it’s as good as playing with kittens.

Famoucity! is as close to purrfect as a show can be, but there’s one thing wrong with it. You say that your cat, Catty, is the best cat. I’m sorry, you’re wrong because my cat, Molly, is the best cat. She used to be the second best cat until last year …

This is something I don’t want to tell you, but I’m worried that there’s something you don’t really understand about cats. Your song “Cats R Forever” is the best song ever written (and I want it as my ring tone), but cats are not for ever. You know how your mum wasn’t for ever? Well cats are like that too.

I found that out last year when my cat, Flue (who WAS the best cat in the world – and I won’t hear anyone say anything different), died. She was very old and got very sick and now I have her ashes in my living room. I’m worried that you really think that cats and especially your lovely Catty (who can be the second best cat in the world) will be with you for ever. Cats can last a long time – much longer than goldfish, long life soy milk or Australian Prime Ministers – but they don’t last as long as most people do. And that’s the only bad thing about cats; that they don’t last as long as we do, and when they die, we cry a lot.

I don’t want this to upset you or put you off performing or being famous, but maybe you need to change your song to “Cats last a long time, but they don’t last for ever” so that it’s more realistic.

Love and purrs

Anne-Marie

PS. I really do want a cat badge.