The Hodgetwins
Factory Theatre
Marrickville, AU
April 25, 2017
The Hodgetwins, Virginia-bred identical siblings Kevin and Keith Hodge, are “social media personalities” and operate a variety of YouTube channels, where they mainly dish out solicited, unadulterated, improvised, on the cuff advice in comically altered voices on sex, love and life their massive fan base asks for via e-mail.
The shtick, which constantly makes themselves laugh, worked so well for them, that apart from promoting their supplement range and fitness channels, they decided to take the show on the road and bring it to Australia as part of the Sydney Comedy Festival.
Their No Filter tour is their attempt at establishing themselves as stand-up comedians and thereby change the perception of them.
The show is narrative driven, spiked with personal observations and detailed depictions of their relationships, their experiences in the professional world and growing up in under poor circumstances.
Despite relying heavily on scurrilous jokes and their bodybuilding aesthetics, their stand-up set does show promise, with nuances shining through that indicate that the deployment of anecdote and recountment of common experience in the vein of Bill Burr or the trenchant observations and storytelling of chief Richard Pryor have had a massive impact on how they tackle and structure their live incarnations.
The siblings have quickly earned a cult following online and the reception Australian audiences greeted them shows that they have an appeal that is not confined to North American territory.
It will be interesting to see if they have the tenacity to refine and evolve their stand-up shows and unique interaction, which is currently heavily based on what has become their comedic catchphrases, low hanging fruit, i.e. employing colourful vulgarities, and their edgy sense of humor.
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Photo sourced from performer website
