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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
'Nanette, Hannah’s masterpiece, saw the adored comedian take home Australia’s most prestigious comedy award ‘The Barry’ for Best Show at this year’s Melbourne International Comedy Festival.
'The world claims to celebrate individuality but Hannah Gadsby knows from experience that this is folly. All the cool kids are normal. Hannah has always dreamt of being a cool kid but she has had to accept that, just like her childhood dream of being a dog, normal is just not possible for her. Over the past year, Hannah decided to embrace solitude, determined to see what harvest may come from nurturing her left field life. And what a strange little harvest, as her new show Nanette will attest.
'This is a show about learning how you can thrive as a “not normal” because Hannah’s year of gentle exile did not just see her harvest silly projects like making homemade jam and adopting a “blue clothes only” policy. It also gave her a strength she badly needed, when she observed with increasing horror the same sex marriage debates begin to hit all the same sickening notes she’d heard as a teenager in the 1990s when Tasmania resisted the decriminalisation of homosexuality.
'At the beginning of 2017 Hannah announced that she would be retiring from the comedy world. As one of Australia’s most applauded and beloved comedians, don’t miss your chance to be spellbound by the inner workings of Hannah’s unique mind while you can.' (Publication summary)
Production Details
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Performed at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival for 2017.
Presented by Token Events and performed at State Theatre Centre of WA - Heath Ledger Theatre : 27 January 2018.
Performed December 2017 at Hamer Hall Melbourne.
Performed at the Sydney Opera House Playhouse, September 27-October 8 2017.
Note: This production was videoed for the Netflix release of Nanette (details below).
Performed at the Edinburgh fringe festival, 2017.
Performed at New York’s SoHo Playhouse 2018.
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
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y
Ten Steps to Nanette
Crows Nest
:
Allen and Unwin
,
2019
12247588
2019
single work
autobiography
'Hannah Gadsby always dreamt of being a cool kid, but she had to accept that, just like her childhood dream of being a dog, 'normal' isn't always possible. In the vein of David Sedaris, Hannah's memoir is a series of interlinked stories that draw together the varied funny and sometimes dark events of her life. The result is a deeply personal, astutely observed, sometimes devastating but frequently hysterically funny book.'
Source: Publisher's blurb.
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'Nanette' by Hannah Gadsby
2018
single work
column
— Appears in: The Monthly , October no. 149 2018; (p. 58) -
Hannah Gadsby : Nanette
2018
single work
review
— Appears in: The Monthly , August no. 147 2018; (p. 16-18)'By now, someone in your life has urged you to watch Nanette, the Netflix special from Australian comedian Hannah Gadsby. They would have described it in the same breathless way people describe their experience of a meditation retreat. It was confronting, revelatory, moving, life-affirming, transformative, unforgettable.' (Introduction)
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Hannah Gadsby’s ‘Nanette’
2018
single work
review
— Appears in: The Saturday Paper , 28 July - 3 August 2018;'Hannah Gadsby’s show Nanette has been met with rave reviews. But can it deliver on what others promise for it?' (Introduction)
-
‘Nanette’ : Hannah Gadsby on Her Gamechanging Stand-Up Special
2018
single work
column
— Appears in: Rolling Stone , 9 July 2018;'The Australian comic on why her Netflix special upends the entire notion of comedy-as-catharsis – and how she ended up creating the moment’s defining stand-up set.'
-
y
Ten Steps to Nanette
Crows Nest
:
Allen and Unwin
,
2019
12247588
2019
single work
autobiography
'Hannah Gadsby always dreamt of being a cool kid, but she had to accept that, just like her childhood dream of being a dog, 'normal' isn't always possible. In the vein of David Sedaris, Hannah's memoir is a series of interlinked stories that draw together the varied funny and sometimes dark events of her life. The result is a deeply personal, astutely observed, sometimes devastating but frequently hysterically funny book.'
Source: Publisher's blurb.
-
‘I Broke the Contract’ : How Hannah Gadsby's Trauma Transformed Comedy
Jenny Valentish
(interviewer),
2018
single work
interview
— Appears in: The Guardian Australia , 16 July 2018;'In her show Nanette, the Australian standup speaks out about homophobic and sexual violence – the set is now a Netflix sensation. She opens up about shame, rage, her autism diagnosis and the meaning of Louis CK.' (Publication abstract)
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‘Nanette’ Is the Most Discussed Comedy Special in Ages. Here’s What to Read About It
2018
single work
column
— Appears in: The New York Times , 13 July 2018;'On June 19, a stand-up special called “Hannah Gadsby: Nanette” appeared on Netflix. An Australian comedian with a role on the sweet antipodean sitcom “Please Like Me,” Gadsby was virtually unknown in the United States, and her special arrived with little fanfare. But over the past few weeks, “Nanette” has become a word-of-mouth phenomenon. In what is ultimately a testament to its widespread cultural impact, it has even generated a modest backlash.' (Introduction)
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Introducing a Major New Voice in Comedy (Who Also Attacks Comedy)
2018
single work
column
— Appears in: The New York Times , March 19 2018;'It was only a matter of time before a stand-up comedian channeled the righteous rage of the current feminist moment.'
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Nanette Rewrites the History of Art
2018
single work
column
— Appears in: The New Republic , 3 July 2018;'In her Netflix special, Hannah Gadsby quits the self-deprecating joke.'
Awards
- 2019 winner The International Emmy Awards — Creative Arts Emmy for Outstanding Writing
- 2018 nominated Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards — Best Television Comedy Series
- 2017 winner Melbourne Comedy Festival — Barry Award
- 2017 winner Edinburgh Festival Fringe — Best Comedy Show