Anna Piper Scott won ‘Best New Writer’ at the Melbourne Fringe in 2022. Her new show ‘Such An Inspiration’ is an often hilarious but occasionally harrowing account of the life of a woman trying to decide whether she wants to be a comedian first and a person second, or vice versa.

The first time I saw her perform at FRINGE WORLD, I was impressed by her incisive jokes about women’s pay, and she continues this tradition in the new show when she recounts her research into the only jobs in Australia where women are paid more than men (the answer is not what I expected, but I won’t give it away) and addresses the controversy on trans women in sport.

She compares the role of comedians in modern society to that of a medieval Court Jester, speaking truth to power for meagre compensation, with the difference being that the powerful (unfortunately) aren’t coming to her shows (the compensation hasn’t changed that much).

Of the many extremely funny moments in the show, the funniest is her impression of a straight man in a gay bar for a straight friend’s buck’s night, which is easily worth the price of admission by itself.

Some of her comedy is decidedly dark, and some of the darkness in the show isn’t comedic. After stating that society casts trans women as either victims or villains, in what she describes as the “Nanette” section of the show she recounts her own experience of being victimized to the point of checking into a very unfunny psych ward – though she delivers on her promise of a happy ending, and everyone seemed to leave the show feeling good (with many of us hanging around outside to chat with her afterwards). What didn’t kill her has made her stronger. Or at least even funnier.