By Nick Pilgrim
Mike McLeish is less than eighty-five days away from a significant milestone birthday. But who’s counting, eh?
Hot on the heels of Adult Beginner, his breakthrough revelation from last year’s Melbourne International Comedy Festival, McLeish returns in 2025 with an equally original follow-up show. For Pensive Like A Fox, the veteran performer and cabaret star takes us gently by the hand through his hour-long ‘journey’ with wit, charm and aplomb.
For anyone out of the loop, cabaret is a very specific artform. A grab bag of anecdotes connected by musical interludes, standout examples I have had the privilege of reviewing to date include:
- Actually, Good(Gillian Cosgriff)
- Broad & Queen Bitch(Geraldine Quinn)
- Nailed It!(Loclan Mackenzie-Spencer & Andrew Strano)
- Someone’s Daughter (Alyce Platt)
- The Kangaroo Effect(Sammy J)
Peppered with a handful of stories and self-penned songs (which he accompanies on piano or guitar), McLeish leads viewers behind the velvet curtain to discover the ins and outs of what it is really like to be a professional showman.
Likening his foray into musical theatre as the live entertainment equivalent to being hooked on methamphetamine, this unshakable addiction took hold very earlier in the artist’s career. Audiences will discover certain acting skills like how much preparation goes into the proper hand clap, mastering the dramatic pause, and achieving the perfect bow.
Further to these fascinating tales of interest, Pensive Like A Fox also includes a solid handful of quirky asides. Here, McLeish:
- Likens the alien from Predator to backyard possums.
- Why no one requests Gatorade after being lost in the desert.
- His abject terror of being tailgated by a Ford Ranger Raptor on Punt Road.
- Begs us to stop making podcasts.
- Confesses why supermarkets are a great idea.
- Reveals how and why he was chosen to represent Australia to save the world.
To live inside McLeish’s creative mind, must be really something!
Other stand-out moments include a relatable song about getting busy with your spouse while your teenage kids are out of the house, a soulful yet distinctly adult anthem dedicated to long-term romance, and a grotesque (but brilliant) earworm to close the show I still can’t seem to get out of my head.
Detailing the joys and pitfalls of (early) middle age, Pensive Like A Fox is one of the delightful highlights of this year’s MICF. Playing at The Butterfly Club in Carson Lane until Sunday April 20, McLeish has done himself proud yet again.
