All for love … and fruit!

Local Southbank comedian and lover of all things love Dave Hynes has recently embarked on his first Melbourne International Comedy Festival (MICF) solo show.

While many comedians often possess a more cynical approach to comedy, poking fun and unraveling everything that is wrong with the world, Dave’s attitude to his craft is the complete opposite!

Running at selected times until April 21 at the Imperial Hotel on Spring St in the CBD, Dave’s show ‘I love you special guest in brackets.

One night only’ is 50 minutes of love, excitement, silliness and pineapples!

Think Jim Carey meets Daft Punk. Then add an adorable neighbour, partnered with a puppy that just wants to be held, Dave’s perfectly charming nature will mess with your humour and tug at your heartstrings.

Complete with a trash can-turned pineapple headset and a jumpsuit, the 31-year-old’s loving approach to comedy is sure to leave you feeling a raft of positive emotions.

“The love aspect of the show is where you can’t feel any boundaries between you and other people and that’s what I want to do,” he said. “I don’t want anyone to leave the show as individuals and I want everyone to feel that they all just did something together and it was a bit weird!” “While I read a lot of news and the world is a messed up place, I just want to create a happy place and I’ve got 50 minutes with a group of people where I can do that.” After months of trawling comedy rooms in New York, Dave first snuck into Melbourne’s comedy scene with his Monday night comedy room Quick Bites at Boney in the CBD three years ago – the same time he moved to Southbank.

Having previously owned and operated his own restaurant in Collingwood prior to embarking on his comedic career, he said the life consuming nature of working in hospitality had become too great of a burden.

“It was breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days and it killed me!” he said.

“I just had no life and I got to this crossroads where I realised that it wasn’t what I wanted.

I was missing birthdays and my friend’s kids getting born.” Since discovering a passion for writing that built on his childhood love for comedy, he said he quickly realised that he wanted to pursue a career in stand up.

“I did my first stand up and was hooked. I knew straight away that’s what I wanted to do,” he said. “I grew up loving comedy through my dad who had a real appreciation for it and I think some of that weirdness and silliness seeped through.

I really enjoy that idea that being an adult doesn’t mean don’t be silly.” Since beginning his journey in comedy, he said one of his main goals has been to “inject some love into the industry”, which he said had a tendency at times of being egotistical and chauvinistic.

His first MICF solo show is an obvious representation of that desire to spread love to anyone and anything, friend or fruit! He said a key inspiration for his show stemmed from his lifelong love of fruit but particularly pineapples, which he described as “symbol of hospitality” that brought people together.

“I had this joke about how much I really love fruit and I think that’s where the start of the show came from because I realised that I loved spruiking positivity,” he said.

“I found that yelling and screaming and getting really animated about how much I loved fruit got me this name.”

“Pineapples are great for breaking down barriers. There’s a whole section of pineapple stuff in Kmart it’s super weird! It’s such a strange ephemeral thing that people are just drawn to for some reason.”

Dave Hynes I love you special guest in brackets.

One night only runs until April 21 as part of the MICF. Expect a night filled with 80s house music, glitter and fruit as musical instruments! Each night also features a completely different special guest, who Dave will quiz on the subject of love.

For more info and to book tickets visit www.comedyfestival.com.au/2018/shows/i-love-you-special-guest-in-brackets-one-night-only