MICF: Non-Dairy Presenting

If you’re a frequent late-night TikTok scroller from Melbourne – like myself – and have been on the platform anytime in the past year or two, you have no doubt come across Aurelia St Clair. Whether from their hilarious breakdown of the cliches of Melbourne suburbs (as a Brunswick bubbler with a tight 2km radius, I feel both personally validated and exposed), their inspiring apartment tours/interior designs or just the beautiful love story of meeting their partner and eloping in Vegas, St Clair is an endearing breath of fresh air on the platform that can both inspire and terrify within seconds.

But TikTok is not St Clair’s claim to fame. They have been around for a while. On top of their writing, podcasting and content creating, St Clair has been frequenting the local comedy scene for the past few years and has been showcasing their work in the Melbourne International Comedy Festival since 2018. This year, they bring their brand new show Non-Dairy Presenting to the 2023 MICF. And it goes without saying, it is razor-sharp from the moment they come out on stage, and never have I felt more exposed as an inner-north oat-latte-sipping, tote-bag wielding millennial.

Opening the show with a Venn diagram of which Melbourne suburbs would identify as non-dairy presenting, St Clair makes it clear that the city is divided by more than just the Yarra. Diving deep into the city’s cultural identities and idiosyncrasies, they jam-pack their hour-long show with some hilariously targeting ASMR; a catchy non-dairy presenting song that will stick in your head for days; and my personal favourite – an interactive game of Red Flag, Green Flag. You’ll learn some things about yourself here, and maybe swipe a little differently if you’re on the apps. Who knew 3RRR bumper stickers were worth some brownie points.

Non-Dairy Presenting is an hour of non-stop entertainment where no one is safe, including St Clair. It will teach you to embrace your Melbournian quirks, but to maybe stick to the CBD if you’re full cream leaning. The show runs until the festival’s closing night on April 23rd at the ETU Ballroom in Trades Hall and is a show you can’t miss. Outside of the festival, you can catch St Clair on their podcast of the same name, on IG and TikTok, or in any non-dairy participating cafes around the inner suburbs of Naarm. You can find tickets below, this is one worth checking out.

Non-Dairy Presenting
ETU Ballroom, Trades Hall – 54 Victoria Street, Carlton
Runs until April 23rd
https://aureliastclair.com/
IG: aureliadotcom
Tiktok: aureliastclair