New Acts Of The Year 2015 finalists announced

The finalists for the New Acts Of The Year 2015 (NATYS) comedy contest have been announced, but accompanied by a warning from the organisers that something needs to change on the live comedy circuit to improve the quality of new acts.

The list of acts taking part in the final, with accompanying notes from the organisers, are listed below:

Sean Patrick: Deadpan commentary on life, love and truth.

Josh R Cherry: Original, slick material, starting to find his voice.

Chris Betts: Long-form, punchy stand-up.

Ashley Haden: Angry and topical and very funny.

Francis Foster: Confused human being, in a ridiculous, bizarre wreckage of an existence.

Mikey Bharj: Impressions as comic comment.

Don Biswas: Razor-sharp one-liners.

The Jest: Innocent sketches with dark, subversive twists.

Rachel Fairburn: Dark, observational humour with a morbid edge.

Nick Elleray: Droll and literate, laconic Australian in London.

Daniel Duffy: A comedy snapshot of life in a bizarre Irish village.

Cheekykita: Clown, character-comedy, surreal, offbeat, energetic and silly.

Joe Sutherland: Caustic, camp cattiness.

Jenny Collier: Likeable, clever, fast-paced wit.

The Herbert: A cockney idiot with a whistle and flutes.

The finalists will appear on New Variety Lives' annual Top-of-the-Bill new-act showcase at the Bloomsbury Theatre on Sunday 25th January 2015. The show will be hosted by Arthur Smith, with last year's Top-of-the-Bill Act, Alasdair Beckett-King, headlining.

The organisers have taken the unusual step of commenting that many of the 144 entrants into this year's qualifying rounds were not up to standard: "Just 26 acts that auditioned were of a sufficient standard, the remainder below par."

Roland Muldoon (pictured) comments: "As the NATYS auditions come to a close and the selection of 15 acts for the Bloomsbury Theatre showcase is chosen, I have to own up that it's been a gruelling, often dispiriting, six-week task. While there is enough new talent to ensure a quality New Acts of the Year evening, I must say that many of the acts that auditioned were, to put it politely, way off the mark; inexperienced, often corny and excruciatingly predictable.

"Week after week the judges shook their collective heads, pondering the questions, 'What's going wrong? Why are so many entrants lacking in stage presence?' One theory is that, as the live comedy circuit is shrinking, the quality circuit acts fill up the available slots. Consequently, there's little or no room for newcomers to gain valuable experience at the remaining established venues. Non-paying, free entry, open mike venues attract hopeful participants who seem to encourage each other to believe that their low, under exposed routines are good enough, and that all they need is a leg up so they, far too soon, join the queues at the talent shows; ill prepared but ready 'to be discovered'."

Muldoon continues: "Could it be that the low levels set by TV panel shows, where the idea of live performance is eschewed, that this all too lack lustre phenomena encourages those who find themselves 'witty' to have a shot at fame, without enough (or any) exposure to the experience of 'real' audiences?

"Our annual NATYS once depended solely on recommendation from existing clubs who, it now seems, are drying up as a reliable source. So, this year we increasingly scrutinised YouTube clips, but these often fail to give the full picture, as a 'good' night at a small venue can mislead and show a distorted response. And so we have auditioned, for the last 6 weeks, over 140 acts. As I said, many were sadly sub-standard.

"However, the good news is that we still had a number of quality acts to choose a 'Bill' from and this year's Bill is top form."

Muldoon concludes: "I have been asked 'If things are getting so bad, why bother at all?' To which the answer must be that, otherwise, what has for over thirty years, become the most dynamic, modern, popular and cultural art form will wither on the vine if it doesn't encourage new talent.

"In the years that I have been involved I have witnessed so many ups and downs; from the underground alternative cabaret beginnings, to the rise of the super agents, who secured long running, exclusive TV contracts for their stables (often from a dynamic small club circuit) to filmed stadium shows, where we see pertinent commentary to cuddly family friendly TV regulars. Where the BBC lets the contradiction pass them by, when they proclaim themselves as 'The Home of Radio Comedy' when they are the ONLY radio comedy.

"Is it now top heavy? Safe? A vehicle for stars that drags the genre away from its roots? The problem seems to me is, what has become cheap for TV and radio to churn out, endangers the really live comedy experience. They are happy to scoop up a few acts without consideration to how they got there. So, by not supporting a live, independent comedy circuit and its encouragement of new talent in the art of comedy, we will kill the goose.

"We can point also to the ever-improving quality of a large number of acts who, over the years, show that their comic professionalism keeps the live circuit happening. I regularly host outer London shows that are packed and at which we also introduce new talent. The answer must be to re-promote the live comedy club experience and secure the economic viability of the established acts, whilst encouraging new talent by drawing attention to the creative value of live performance."