Adrienne Truscott: nudity is a very inexpensive and effective costume

The performance artist-turned-standup on appearing naked from the waist down, male audiences and the chances of walking out of her show ‘unraped’

If there is anyone who should be able to find a decent bikini wax anywhere in the world, it’s Adrienne Truscott. “They vary enormously from city to city, from country to country and culture to culture,” says the US performance artist-turned-standup. “And there is probably no conversation more ludicrous than the one I have to have with my bikini waxer.”

Truscott has very specific requirements for any would-be depilator, given the area in question plays a key role in her standup show, making its latest stop at Sydney festival. In Asking for It, Truscott dissects the politics around rape and comedy while wearing a platinum wig, denim jacket, high heels – and not much else.

The idea behind the award-winning show, which debuted at the 2013 Edinburgh festival fringe to high praise from critics and audiences, had been “gnawing” at her for a while. One half of burlesque duo the Wau Wau Sisters, Truscott wanted to try her hand at comedy and thought the issues around rape could make for an interesting show.

She was spurred on by the noticeable rise of rape jokes in standup, particularly when US comedian Daniel Tosh responded to a female heckler by saying: “Wouldn’t it be funny if that girl got raped by, like, five guys right now?”

While she doesn’t believe comedy should be censored – “what I like may not be what you like, but if you want freedom of speech, it all must be heard” – Truscott hoped to tackle what she describes as “lazy” comedy. “I’m perfectly comfortable as a performer to make other people uncomfortable, [but] I like to think that lack of comfort is something progressive and interesting and not just to be offensive for offence’s sake.”

Doing the show pantless makes the point that wearing a provocative outfit shouldn’t put her at risk of being raped. “If the rules are that a flirty lady having a good time in provocative clothing and having a couple of drinks is a girl asking for it, then that would be me – and yet every night I am able to walk out of my show unraped. It has nothing to do with what I’m doing or what I’m wearing. It has to do with whether there is a person in the audience prepared to rape somebody,” she says.

She’s also acutely aware of the effect. “The not-wearing-of-the-pants is partly a very serious point taken to the nth degree, partly because I think it’s a hilarious costume and partly because I’m well aware it’s a gimmick. I’ve been around the block and on stages long enough to know that it’s a very inexpensive and effective costume, nudity, and alongside that, can be very powerful.”

Truscott continues to tinker with the show – “different material, unfortunately, is constantly presenting itself” – and still enjoys the audience’s initial response. “There are so many different expressions and reactions and body language when I first come out on stage without pants on, when nobody knows what to expect.”

She cites a man in Philadelphia who began being bawdy but fell into a drunken stupor only minutes after the show started. It made for oodles of material, says Truscott, including a close-up dance around the oblivious patron, much to the delight of the rest of the audience. “If they laughed too loudly, I would shush them. I was like: ‘You guys, he’s trying to sleep.’”

Rowdy men don’t faze her – she even gets stag groups into her show. In fact, she’d rather play to boys nights out than an obviously sympathetic artsy crowd. “I find a boisterous and challenging audience fun … I’m a seasoned enough performer to know what types of responses to anticipate and have a way to incorporate and deal with them.” Besides, she says, “if a guy really acts up, the ironies are so rich that it only makes the show more meaningful.”

Adrienne Truscott’s Asking for It: A One-Lady Rape About Comedy Starring Her Pussy and Little Else! is at the Seymour Centre, Sydney until 18 January

Sydney festival 2015 runs from 8 to 26 January at venues citywide. Find all Guardian Australia’s coverage here

Asking For It five-star review: sophisticated confrontationalism

Adrienne Truscott: the day I lost my job for Linda McCartney

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