ACTUALLY, GOOD readily sold out two shows at this month’s Bondi Festival after earlier this year winning two of the most highly prized awards in this year’s Melbourne International Comedy Festival. The writer and solo performer, Gillian Cosgriff is a Melbourne-based award winning musical comedian, singer, musician, actor, writer and composer who prior to this show had spent an extensive period as Delphi in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. Through song and stand-up comedy, ACTUALLY, GOOD  draws on some of this story plus others from her life interweaved through audience contributions.

The concept for the show came out of a “terrible holiday” and since 2022, Gillian Cosgriff has been asking people for their lists of 10 things they like. In ACTUALLY, GOOD  Cosgriff collaborates on a new list with her audience each night. Cosgriff transcribes the list into her “book of tiny delights” on stage, under a small mushroom shaped light. Her gentle approach allows the audience to feel comfortable sharing and individuals bond through their common reaction.

The show is fast-paced, funny and generally positive. I say generally as it is about life and death, so not everything is positive. Her interactions with the audience contributions are carried out in a good-natured way. Some of the audience readily identify with her ‘chaos drawer’ and other things previous audiences have contributed, and remain curious about their own and others’ lists. She does not just deal at the superficial level, merely listing things, but tries to address the feelings behind them. 

The list contributed by the audience is noted and perhaps gets embellished with humour. She does not use the audience items with immediate musical improvisation. The songs are about things from her own list. One of the last songs is the simple list from the audience, closing out a fun show.

Gillian Cosgriff has toured extensively with her solo shows as a comedian and cabaret performer, most notably at the Adelaide Cabaret Festival, Melbourne International Comedy Festival, Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and Leicester Square Theatre in London. She co-wrote the opera Lorelei for Victorian Opera with Casey Bennetto and Julian Langdon in 2018.

Cosgriff has said she’s anxious and a pessimist. But through every performance, both Cosgriff and the audience are reminded how nice and “actually good” it is to appreciate the small good things. Most of the audience left feeling ‘actually good’ for the ‘now’. 

ACTUALLY, GOOD is playing the Seagull Room at Bondi Pavilion until Sunday 2 July at 7pm. The Sunday show will be Auslan interpreted. The Bondi Festival is on until 16 July.