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Promotional art for Entry Level Human
Cover image credit: Promotional image via Comedy Dynamics

Entry Level Human

Zoe Lyons

Comedy Dynamics · 2021 · 59 min

A high-energy set about lowering expectations for the human race.

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Released , on Comedy Dynamics.

Zoe Lyons builds the hour around a straightforward diagnosis of everyday frustration: the world is overrun by entry-level humans. These are the baseline models of the species: the people playing phone audio without headphones on trains, dumping rubbish on beaches, and treating motivational wall decals like holy scripture. Rather than venting from high above, she places herself squarely inside the mess, arguing that domestic sanity only arrives once personal expectations are driven into the floor.

The domestic routines draw from life in Brighton with her Dutch wife, whose baffling gift choices trigger full-bodied rants. Lyons works the stage aggressively, acting out minor squabbles, the revelation of drinking a flat white, and the creeping fatigue of middle age.

NextUp recorded the show at Edinburgh’s Gilded Balloon before its commercial streaming release in 2021. By that stage, Lyons was an established fixture on Live at the Apollo and Mock the Week, right around the time she was tapped to host the BBC quiz show Lightning. Edinburgh reviewers gave the run four- and five-star notices, pointing out how easily she kept a room of several hundred people in lockstep.

Notable bits & set list

5 bits

  1. The IT technician and the 'entry level' epiphany

    An IT professional dismisses Lyons' computer as 'entry level', giving her an overarching catch-all phrase to diagnose modern human idiocy across society.

  2. Drunken Glaswegian trapped fly

    Uses physical comedy and vocal impressions to compare the disoriented behavior of a trapped fly in her flat to a drunken Glaswegian.

  3. Deliveroo tracking and technology reliance

    Mocks how people depend on internet convenience by depicting a couple blankly watching a frozen delivery avatar while the driver has likely crashed.

  4. Scuba diving near-death experience

    Recounts pushing herself into scuba diving with her wife, mixing genuine physical jeopardy with self-aware euphemisms about lesbianism.

  5. Brits abroad and holiday ignorance

    Spurred by crowdwork with an Australian couple, uses accurate accents and facial expressions to satirize the behavior and ignorance of British tourists.

How it plays

Tone
Satirical, observant, lighthearted, and playfully caustic.
On stage
Articulate, sharp-witted, highly animated, and physically expressive comic with strong comic timing and theatrical delivery.
Pace
High-energy and lively, described as performed with rare vim and an escalating tempo that matches the room.
About
The evolution of human stupidity ('entry-level humans'), Brexit and political absurdity, Domestic life and marriage, Modern technology and social media, Public transport and travel behavior

What the critics said

Universally praised by critics as a masterfully constructed, tightly paced hour of stand-up distinguished by superb physical comedy and sharp satire, though one reviewer observed a tendency to occasionally extend bits beyond their natural conclusion.

In the room: Full-house crowds that responded enthusiastically to her energy, culminating in standing ovations.

Summed up from reviews, articles and listings. Sources: comedydynamics.com, allmovie.com, tubitv.com, chortle.co.uk, fringereview.co.uk, magazine.funnywomen.com, thestudentnews.co.uk, imdb.com, itv.com.

Backstory

Written and performed amid the political climate of Brexit and the aftermath of the referendum, examining everyday social regressiveness alongside domestic life with her wife.

Details

Released
Runtime
59 min
Where
Comedy Dynamics
Director
Zoe Lyons
Honors
5 stars - Funny Women MagazineHighly Recommended - FringeReview
Topics

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