Holy Bin A Moley | Art for Earthlings

Back in the heyday of Nickelodeon there was a sketch show called The Amanda Show, a program that featured Amanda Byrnes in the lead role. As I sat through Holy Bin A Moley, it took me back to my childhood and watching those sketch performances that were aimed towards a younger demographic.

I wasn’t the intended audience for the Art for Earthlings production, but with that being said it’s a performance that I would revisit again and bring my nephews and nieces along to as I feel it would be something they’d enjoy and learn from.

Holy Bin A Moley is family fun for all ages, children will enjoy it and parents will also find themselves laughing along to some of the silliness that unfolds. Whether it’s characters like Rhonda Recycling, the bin-vestigators or my personal favourites, Charlie and his two best friends, Freddy and Stewie.

Charlie is a caricature of a Wynnum teenager that does sick skateboard tricks and leaves his rubbish on the ground, although at times the caricature feels quite accurate and we most likely all know a ‘Charlie.’ His story arc of learning to put the rubbish in the bin after receiving advice from talking bin-chickens, which then inspires him to go on ‘bin-tock’ and create videos with his best friends was brilliantly done and made me laugh.

Samantha, Nicolas, and Jennifer are all fantastic actors. Bringing each of the characters they play to life with an understanding of how to perform children’s entertainment, but like those Nickelodeon shows they still manage to have jokes for the adults. They also aren’t afraid to make fun of themselves or show their improvisation skill when the kids are offering their suggestions.

The comedy combines multiple styles. There are musical elements, silent comedy that reminded me of Mr. Bean, physical comedy, and a lot of absurdity throughout. But beneath the comedic nature of the show is an educational piece. It’s a show with a strong message and it teaches not only children but adults too about the importance of recycling and the impact that littering can have on the environment.

As the show neared its end, there is an interactive part where three bins are put on stage: a regular bin, a recycling bin, and a bin for compost. The kids are then asked which bins certain waste will go in and it was evident that the younger audience were paying attention and engaged through the various sketches as they chose the correct ones.

Because of its message you get a show that can easily be toured around the country and performed at other Fringe Festivals or comedy events, but it’s also something that can be taken into schools to educate students which I think Art for Earthlings might already be doing.

 The humour in it might not always be specifically aimed at me, however, the biggest compliment I can give the performers and those involved in the production of it is that after the show, I overheard many of the children and parents talk about how much fun they had watching it and for that Holy Bin A Moley proved to be a success.

Also, the Holy Bin A Moley theme song has been stuck in my head since first hearing it and doesn’t seem to be leaving anytime soon. Fun times!