Small-town laughs heading to Gore

Comedian Tom Sainsbury is used to travelling around the country to perform, but when he takes the stage in Gore during the Tussock Country Music Festival this May, it will feel more like returning a favour.

Sainsbury says it was noticing how many people from Gore were travelling to see his shows elsewhere that prompted the decision.

“Every time I go and do a show down there, people travel from far and away from Gore to come and see me,” he said.

“And I feel terrible about it. So, this time I’m coming to you.”

During a South Island tour last year, Sainsbury realised just how far some fans were travelling to catch his shows.

“I was asking people where they’d come from and there were always people from Gore,” he said.

“I was like, ‘Dunedin to Gore is a long drive. Are you getting back tonight?’ And they were like, ‘Yeah.’ I thought, okay, this is too much.”

The idea to bring a show to Gore soon followed after a conversation with festival organisers.

Sainsbury said performing in smaller rural towns often feels familiar.

Raised on a farm in Matamata, he says the culture of rural communities still resonates with him.

“The vibe’s very similar,” he said.

“When I’m in somewhere like Gore, particularly a small rural town, I just feel like culturally we’re all very similar. We all kind of get each other.”

That rural upbringing also shapes much of the character-based comedy he has become known for online.

From the wine-loving middle-aged reviewer Fiona to the well-meaning but slightly clueless “Boomer Dad”, Sainsbury’s characters often feel instantly recognisable.

“I love it when people say ‘this is just like someone from my childhood’,” he said.

Fiona, in particular, seems to strike a chord.

“More than any other character, women come up to me and say, ‘I am Fiona.’ They brazenly own it,” he said.

Relatability is at the heart of the humour.

“I think it’s that generation of aunties and uncles. They all kind of behave very similarly,” he said.

Growing up in a small town also gave him plenty of time to observe people closely.

“With small towns you are there with these people your whole life,” he said.

“The postie was the same person we had throughout our life. Our bus driver was the same bus driver throughout my childhood.

“You spend so much time around the same people that you really get to study them.”

While audiences in cities and rural towns may react slightly differently, Sainsbury says the material itself tends to land everywhere.

“In smaller towns people can take a little longer to warm up,” he said.

“In the city people have more shows to choose from so they kind of know how it works. But once rural crowds warm up, they’re great.”

Sainsbury’s comedy career took off during the 2017 New Zealand election when his political parody videos gained a large online following.

Since then, social media has allowed his audience to grow steadily, something he says would have been unimaginable growing up.

“To tell my 13-year-old self this is what your life would be, he’d be like ‘what?’,” he said.

Fans also play a role in shaping his material.

“About half the inspiration comes from people’s comments underneath the videos,” he said.

One character he suspects might feel right at home in Gore is Tayn, a boy racer who enjoys cruising around town.

“Everyone kind of said ‘yes, we all know Tayn’,” he laughed.

While his comedy pokes fun at familiar Kiwi personalities, Sainsbury says he is mindful about crossing the line.

 “If something’s funny you should put it out there in the world,” he said.

“But sometimes if it hits a sensitive nerve, it’s not a big deal to take it down.”

Ultimately, the show he brings to Gore will be tailored to the audience.

“The show I’m doing is definitely catered to small town New Zealand,” he said.

And for a comedian whose work often celebrates the quirks of everyday Kiwi life, that audience might be the perfect fit.