Ting Lim’s ‘Well, This is Awkward’ is an aptly named stand-up routine about finding oneself in awkward situations, from your first exorcism to being the plus one at a complete stranger’s funeral in a poorly lit Australian cemetery… as well as more widely experienced awkward moments such as doctor’s appointments, trying to find a good therapist, working in I.T., getting a near-perfect score on a test for anxiety, and unsolicited conversations with strangers at the dog park.

Awkwardness was part of the show from the beginning because it wasn’t particularly well attended and Ting Lim’s request that we all move to the front rows was not universally popular. Apart from that, she didn’t ask for much in the way of audience participation except for an occasional show of hands in answer to a few innocuous questions, so unless you’re horribly humiliated to have to admit you’re in your thirties and/or a Perth local, you’re fairly safe. If coarse language and sexual references embarrass you, the show does feature both, but it’s closer to M-rated than R-rated.

Ting Lim spoke humorously about some of the awkwardness that comes with ordinary life in an unfamiliar culture, with occasional discussion of life in Singapore outside of Changi Airport, and other subjects. I was disappointed that her account of fighting with a Michael Jackson impersonator seems to have been dropped from her routine, but she even made me laugh with her story about having to choose the funeral arrangements for a dead cat (not to be confused with the funeral at which she was a friend’s plus one as well as the sole example of ethnic and cultural diversity).

It wasn’t the funniest stand-up show I’ve seen this year at FRINGE WORLD, but it features some punchy one-liners delivered with excellent comic timing. Recommended if you want a reminder that awkward situations can be laughed at – with hindsight.