Tama Alexander is a prominent voice in the comedy scene who uses his student experiences to entertain both locally and nationally, combining cutting sardonic humour with musical theatricality. The 2023 Dunedin Fringe Festival saw Tama’s debut solo show ‘Fresher’, which detailed his humorous escapades as a first-year at Otago and reached critical acclaim. This year he returns to Fringe with a highly anticipated follow-up show, ‘Breatha’. Critic Te Ārohi caught up with the stand-up legend to talk about his previous Fringe experience, comedic influences, and the new show.
Ōtepoti local Tama started doing stand-up comedy in 2021 when a friend in the scene offered a slot for him to perform. Tama told Critic that he was just 17 when he started doing shows, and that since then, “I started doing more and it snowballed into this big thing.” He first got into Fringe in 2022 by doing a half-hour set with his friend, before later “throwing himself in the deep end” and writing solo acts.
Growing up watching British and New Zealand panel shows, Tama was heavily influenced by James Acaster, Kevin Bridges, and Ricky Gervais. “I’ve been told my comedy has been a cross between all of those people, not much in terms of content but just delivery,” said Tama, claiming that his energetic showmanship is “quite different from what else is going on in the New Zealand scene.”
Tama’s previous show, ‘Fresher’, featured the ridiculous situations he fell into as a first year at Otago, and this year's follow-up, ‘Breatha’, details his second year, when he became the titular trope. “It’s about when I became an absolute breatha and everything was falling apart,” he told Critic, referring to it as “my descent into chaos.” As for his inspiration, Tama was always just the kind of person who would fall into comedic situations. Now that he’s a stand-up comedian, however, he tries to get into them intentionally. “I put myself in new situations because I’m like, ‘There’s a story in this, I’ve got to do it.’” The epitome of ‘do it for the plot.’
In the social media age, comedy is as accessible and competitive as ever but that doesn’t phase Tama. “I just try to be as good as I can be,” he said. “If I’m the best comic of the night on a bunch of different lineups I’ll be remembered.” He also added that he stands out due to incorporating music into his comedy. “I play the accordion and the guitar […] I grew up watching Flight of the Conchords and that highly influenced me, it’s now part of what I do,” said Tama. “I still like classic mic and stage though.”
The Dunedin comedy scene has expanded rapidly within the past couple of years, especially due to the exposure Fringe has given to up and coming comics. Tama commented, “It’s super inclusive and everyone is really helpful. It isn’t big enough to have many dramas, and it’s easy to get involved in.”
Tama’s show ‘Breatha’ will be on the 14th, 15th and 16th of March at the Playhouse Theatre for the Dunedin Fringe Festival. Tickets are $10-15. If you want to see more of Tama you can follow him @tama_a.w on Instagram.