By CASEY NEILL
COMEDIAN Tegan Higginbotham credits a Cleeland Secondary College teacher with setting her career path which has put her on television screens across the country.
In the midst of this year’s Melbourne International Comedy Festival, the 26-year-old last week told the Journal that Robert Lloyd entered her and several classmates in the festival’s Class Clowns contest in 2005.
Tegan reached the final and has performed at the festival every year since.
“Before you know it you’re performing five nights a week in pubs,” she said.
“I still find it terrifying but if it goes well you can feel like you can fly for a little while, so it’s amazing.”
Tegan spent the first 21 years of her life in Dandenong – in Herbert Street – and was schooled at Dandenong Primary School and Cleeland, which has since merged with Dandenong High School.
“I loved it,” she said.
“I was a tomboy. I don’t know if that was the result of the suburb or my dad wanted a son and didn’t have one.
“One comment I get is that I tend to swear a lot in my comedy, and I don’t know if that’s a Dandenong thing.
“I know that Dandenong has this reputation and I, of course, use that in my comedy because it’s a funny reputation, but when you grow up in a place it’s all you know.”
Tegan didn’t even realise how multicultural her home was until she started touring.
Wagga Wagga in New South Wales was one of her first stops.
“I remember thinking ‘everybody here is white Australian’,” she said.
“I kind of missed the differences.
“It’s such an interesting and big place.”
Her latest show Game Changer is the third in a sports-themed trilogy and explores newer sports around Melbourne – like lingerie league and pole dancing.
“Sport and comedy tend to go hand in hand quite easily,” she said.
“There are a lot of ridiculous things in sport.
“Pole dancing trying to become pole sports is ridiculous.”
Tegan’s dream was to become a serious actress but she’s found comedy a perfect fit.
“You have more control in comedy.
“You can think of something and perform it that evening,” she said.
“In acting there’s a lot of waiting for someone to call you.
“I would love to look back into that direction, but I’m having so much fun with comedy.”
She’s getting a taste of acting through television’s Have You Been Paying Attention and Spicks and Specks.
But the comedy festival is keeping her busy for now, with 22 shows in three and a half weeks.
“Everybody just starts popping vitamins,” she said.
“You just become paranoid that you’re going to get sick all of a sudden.
“But it’s lonely once it’s over.”
Game Changer is on in Portland Hotel’s Gold Room, corner Russell and Little Collins streets, Melbourne, at 7.15pm until 20 April.
Tickets are available from comedyfestival.com.au.
