Solving the world’s problems

Michael Shafar can solve the world’s problems. It’s something he has always been passionate about. During COVID-19, he came up with plans to get everyone vaccinated. He also claims that he has figured out how to fold a fitted sheet, which is obviously the bane of everyone’s existence. Now, he promises to provide solutions to reverse the brutal history of colonisation, as well as to combat racism and what we can learn from ISIS with his new show Well Worth The Chemo.

“I solve all of antisemitism, and the Kanye debacle. I have a solution for what we can do with Kanye to fix that,” he told The AJN. “I solve colonialism. So, Australia doesn’t really know how to deal with its own history. I’ve got a pretty good solution for that, and it is to just murder one member from the royal family. I just fix racism completely.

“Give me 50 minutes and I’ll get it all done,” he quipped.

It’s this quirky sense of humour that has not only filled up comedy centres and theatres, but has also seen Shafar appear on Network 10’s The Project and Studio 10, ABC’s Comedy Bites, SBS’s RAW Comedy and pretty much every other TV and radio network in the country.

But, he wasn’t always a comedian. In fact, he started out in law.

“I did some clerkships at some commercial law firms,” he recalled. “I didn’t want to be there, and they didn’t want me to be there.”

Explaining that he always liked comedy and believed he could be funny, he thought he’d give it a go. When he was younger, Shafar competed in the public speaking competitions during his schooling at Mount Scopus College, presenting a funny speech each year and getting some well-deserved laughs. He credits those as one of his first forays into comedy, saying, “That’s where it all started.”

Shafar explained that a lot of his material comes from simply watching the news and getting angry at things. But he also gets much pleasure (and ideas) from social media. He shares a lot of his gigs on social media platforms and explained that while he is often attacked by trolls, he finds most of their comments amusing.

“They are really helpful. People write the funniest and dumbest things and I just find it hilarious,” he told Adelaide Glam ahead of his Fringe Festival show. “It’s really great when people write something negative that could actually be interpreted as a compliment. So I love sharing it as a compliment on social media just to annoy them. Kill them with kindness.”

Describing Well Worth the Chemo as his “edgiest show yet”, even though he hates using words like ‘edgy’, he said a lot of what he talks about on stage, he knows people wouldn’t necessarily talk about in public. They’d agree with him, but they wouldn’t admit that they agree with him.

“That’s something I like to do with stand-up, talk about things you agree with but you are not going to say it out loud,” Adelaide Glam quoted him as saying, including bits about the Queen passing away – perhaps a hint as to the colonialism topic Shafar alluded to when chatting to The AJN – and bits and pieces from recent news.

He freely admits that he likes to keep people on their toes.

And it’s very true when you consider the topics he covers – from racism and colonialism (and solving those problems) to cancer and his Jewish mother’s anguish over his career choice. Although he acknowledges that she has probably forgiven him now for giving up on law due to the fact that he has sold out shows around the country. And, he reminded us, he has a show, A(LIVE), on Amazon Prime with another special, Alright, Next Joke, about to drop on YouTube.

“It’s my standard trademark style of comedy, which is taking the contrarian view on things and making a good point very badly,” he explained.

In the specials, Shafar talks about his cancer experience and shares that again, he solves some problems, including homophobia, racism and Islamophobia. “Anything that involves prejudice,” he described. “If everyone just watched my specials, I think everything will be fine.”

Talking about his cancer journey, Shafar survived cancer twice, and tried his best to work through treatment both times. The personal story has become a very big part of his routine, and even influenced the title of his latest show. While he acknowledges the positive reviews he receives for his show, he said his favourite ever was from his oncologist who wrote the comedian an email after he saw him perform live. It said: “Great show, Michael! You were well worth the chemo!”

Shafar said it felt very nice to receive that review, recalling that usually, emails from an oncologist don’t always make for enjoyable reading.

“I think it says a lot about our relationship. He’s a really funny guy and we connected really well,” he said. “I think the entire Peter Mac team that treated me came along to my show. That was really beautiful. Terrifying but beautiful.”

Michael Shafar will be performing Well Worth the Chemo as part of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. For more information, visit comedyfestival.com.au