Canberra academic-turned-comedian Jo Richards tackles sexism through stand-up

Stand-up comedy has an unflattering reputation for using offensive material, such as sexist jokes, to grab a quick reaction from audiences.

So, how does a young lesbian feminist, who is also doing a PhD in gender studies, make it in that kind of environment?

Quite well, actually.

Emerging comedian Jo Richards first stepped onto the stand-up scene just a couple of months ago, but has already successfully performed almost a dozen live shows.

The 27-year-old Canberra actor saw all her work dry up as a result of COVID-19 restrictions imposed on theatres, but by chance, she happened upon a comedy course and decided to “give this a crack”.

“I thought [comedy] would be easier because I have so much acting experience, but it’s very scary,” Richards…