Hot off the trail _{by Isabella Smith}

Hutt Valley-born comedian James Nokise has been on a whopping 33-date tour. Beginning in Whangārei, he travelled the length of Te Ika-a-Māui, stopping in every town and city, crossed the Cook Strait and covered Te Waipounamu, before wrapping back up to Wellington just in time for the election.

On the 6^th of November at The Fringe Bar, the raconteur of political snipes is serving up gags across party lines in his show One Night Rant, where no politician or policy is safe. The 8pm slot has sold out, but a 6pm show was added to meet demand. For out-of-towners, you can get a livestream ticket to the 8pm show or find live-from-the-road field reports from each stop of the tour at www.jamesnokise.com

We caught up to discuss what’s set to be a frenetic evening of fist-shaking, boot-stomping catharsis.

Tell me about the nationwide tour.

I wanted to be able to really get a feel for the country’s attitude towards the election and current politics. We hear a lot about what small town NZ feels, but don’t necessarily see it. Also, there are amazing stories and characters to be found around the country. The tour has let me seek out those stories too. 

Has the show evolved over time?

I had a really scripted, tight hour of jokes ready for opening night and it sort of went out the window as soon as I asked ‘How’s everyone feeling about the election?’ The show’s now morphed into much more of a comedic town hall meet. The jokes are still there, but people have got stuff they want to get off their chests. 

How does it feel to follow the election so closely? 

Exhausting? Debilitating? Stimulating? It’s not just the MPs that make the news. When you do a tour like this, you’re looking at all the local candidates in the places you perform at. I’m absorbing a lot of the press cycle, but I’m also finding out the quirks of local politics as I visit new places. 

What kind of vibes do you anticipate in the capital?

There’s a certain mania building in Wellington around the election. It’s not an excitement as much as a sort of repressed catharsis from a city that’s neck deep in bureaucracy. I’m looking forward to tapping into that energy, and sort of showing that off on the livestream we’ve got happening for people from out of town or overseas. Wellington is a dorky city, but it’s got an edge I think people forget about. 

What’s on the cards for the night?

A lot of stories from the tour, and a summary of the campaigns. I’m not gonna tell people how to vote, but I will be making fun of every party and hopefully picking up a few final stories from the Welly gossip machine too. I’m throwing the kitchen sink at those shows, and I think the crowd will bring that kind of energy too.