FAHn Friends and FAH

My Final and Third Night at Vicar Street

12:15am Foil appeared out the door of Vicar Street!

1:00am Arms and Hog appeared out the door of Vicar Street!

I think these two photos about sum up the weekend with fahn friends and the lads. A lovely community of people who truly enjoyed one another and connected with their absolute favorite comedians! Of course, we did ask them for pictures with us and they were incredibly kind, as usual. Foil stayed for the picture and a little bit of chatting and then rode off into the night on his unbelievably amazing bicycle - it's really quite flash, dear readers, if I must say so myself. During this time, Mick also exited the building and we got a chance to say goodbye to him as well. We all just hung out chatting with each other after that. Honestly, I was even unsure of the time, I was having so much fun talking to people.

Then all of a sudden Arms and Hog appeared and that was just so wonderful. The feeling of seeing the two of them standing there in our midst, in their street clothes, so laid back and happy to be among us was the most amazing feeling. They agreed right away to a picture and there was a nice sense of relaxed togetherness, all very sweet and chatty. Hog was the first to leave us after the picture, but Arms hung around some more. Everyone got a chance to say hi, to ask a few questions, and to tell him how much their comedy means to us. He was his usual patient, giving, open self. But finally, it was time for him to go. He gathered up his bags (he had all the presents that fahns had given the lads over the three days there, A LOT of stuff!) and walked towards the street, looking for a taxi. But what, dear reader, happened next? He stopped for some more chatting with fahns! This was all nonchalant, though. Nothing rushed, nothing felt pushed or like we were keeping him, though we all knew he was heading home. Then I saw a taxi roll up and I thought it was for him, so I walked over and let him know it was there, but when he went to get in - the taxi drove off! That was a pretty funny moment - a bit tragic because it was clear he was so, so tired, but also funny because he didn't expect it himself. So he crossed the street then, hailed a taxi, waved to us one more time and got in to go home.

I think these final experiences with FAH epitomized, for me, what the three days at Vicar Street meant. A sense of being in a community, one that connected first because of the comedy of FAH, but now has moved beyond that to connect over shared interests, languages, countries, places of origin, writing, art, music, and so much more. When you're basically kickin' it with FAH after midnight in a Dublin alleyway, you know you've arrived at a dream point in your life. Yep, that was me just last night and I consider those 10 minutes with Foil, 5 or so minutes with Hog, and the whopping 25+ minutes with Arms to be like stepping into fahndom heaven. Yet we still all had our feet on the ground and never thought for one moment that we were anywhere else except in the presence of the comedians we love to support and whose humor makes us happy.

And what of the last show that the lads did? Well, it was utterly brilliant of course. But there was definitely a different feeling in the audience this time. Perhaps it was because it was Saturday night? Or maybe that everyone seemed to have had a bit too much to drink, but to me the audience didn't feel as alive and energetic as the previous two that I had attended on Thursday and Friday. There were no hecklers this time at all, everyone laughed at FAH's jokes, there was plenty of improvisation and lots of re-do's with the lads starting over and trying to get Foil to laugh at points and Hog working hard to steer everyone over a cliff, never to return to the script but after two high energy days, this show felt a little less energetic and bouncy.

We still had wonderful audience support, worked with some great audience members and FAH ran through every single sketch with comedic grace. But what made the night a little different for me was something that fahns might have experienced at other comedic gigs. Here's a famous line from one of the lads' live shows that most fahns will know: "Who's a prick? You're a prick" - yes, that's right! I sat next to a TOTAL PRICK during the final show with the lads! He was there with his girlfriend/wife and he was totally and absolutely bored! He talked to her, he touched her, he bothered her, he pulled her towards him, he kissed her and there was oodles of canoodling going on. And at the intermission, it was practically a Streetcar Named Desire moment. You know, STELLLLLAAAAA! Yes, that's right, he yelled after his girlfriend (I pity her, if she's an actual wife) over and over again. Of course, she was totally out of earshot, which meant that he then had to get up and go after her. The horror of the night was that they returned for the second half of the show.

And the worst comedic crime of all? This prick talked through some of best of FAH's jokes and I missed them!!!! Oh, I wanted to elbow the prick in the ribs and tell him to shut the fuck up, but I was a polite person and said not a word.

Anyway, dear readers, I digress. What really matters is the friendship and community that I experienced over the time at Vicar Street, the wonderful moments of the gigs and the sheer excitement of being with people I thoroughly love and enjoy! And what of Dublin? Well, I honestly haven't seen much of it. While people have been bopping around, I've been wandering a bit, meeting up with new fahns, resting in between, writing these blogs and generally trying to take some stuff in and missing a whole lot more. I'll include a few pictures of my time here that I like and then hope to the comedic goddess on high that I can return again to see FAH in action once more.

I think we should have a reunion next year in April 2023, if at all possible, and converge on Dublin for more FAH shows, but that's just me. For all I know, FAH will (hopefully) be in Australia and New Zealand to see other fahns and do other shows. From my point of view, everyone should see a FAH show in their lifetime or maybe two or three or, wait, six or seven just so that they can experience the incredible funnies of these three lovely lads.

Standing on one of the many bridges in Dublin. This was my walk to Vicar Street.

Smock Alley Theatre where FAH have performed in the past.

Very near Vicar Street.

The infamous place itself, mere steps from where the lads stood on stage to wow us all!