Comedy review: Becky Lucas in 'Little Bitch'

Becky Lucas draws her audience in with cutting observations and excellently constructed anecdotes. Photo / supplied

Becky Lucas' show Little Bitch is millennial humour at its finest. The Australian comedian consistently nails punchline after punchline with her astute brand of humour, which is unapologetically crass and cunningly self-aware.

Lucas gave Kiwi audiences a taste of her stand-up with a short set in last year's Breakout Comedy, which also featured fellow emerging Australian comics Ray Badran, Gen Fricker and Rhys Nicholson.

Returning to the festival with a full solo show, Lucas' one-hour set gives her room to move around, and allows her jokes the time they deserve.

Lucas draws her audience in with cutting observations and excellently constructed anecdotes, which never quite go the way you're expecting and are all the more hilarious because of it. Some of her greatest gags come from mocking specific stereotypes of other people, from uncomfortably creepy men to neurotic women, but she's just as quick to mock herself and pad out embarrassing stories for comedic effect.

Lucas is not afraid to tease her audience, and she peppers the show with spontaneous interactions that prove her as a master improviser. She always manages to steer these moments towards clever and surprising punchlines, even if audience members don't quite yield to her line of questioning.

Certain millennial-specific jokes may be lost on older audience members, and those who struggle to handle crude and sexual humour may be wise to avoid this show. But it's hard not to see Lucas is one of Australia's most exciting young comedians, offering a refreshingly clever performance that is not to be missed.