Sam Wills

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Sam Wills
File:The Sam Wills - 4718383365.jpg
Wills performing in Victoria Square, Christchurch in 2010
Pseudonym The Boy With Tape on his Face
Born (1978-08-28) 28 August 1978 (age 45)
Nationality New Zealand
Years active 2001–present
Genres prop-comic
Spouse Felicity Wills (née Redman)

Sam Wills (born 28 August 1978), is a New Zealand prop comic and mime residing in London. On stage, he performs as The Boy With Tape On His Face,[1] as half of the two-person act Spitroast, or simply as Sam Wills.[2] He performs regularly on the New Zealand Comedy Circuit, has featured in the New Zealand International Comedy Festival[3] and the World Buskers Festival.[4]

Biography

Sam Wills began his performing career in Timaru at the age of thirteen while he trained as an apprentice clown. He has since mastered a diverse range of performance styles and skills. He holds a diploma in New Circus from Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology's Circus School where he has taught juggling there for two years. His interest in the phenomenon of traditional circus freak shows and influences such as the Jim Rose Circus and the Tokyo Shock Boys led to experiments with shock comedy, earning him his first Pulp Comedy appearance, the Best New Face award for the 2001 season, and the title ‘Prince of Cringe’ from Truth and TV Extra magazine.

Until 2001, Wills was a driving force in the Christchurch entertainment scene, featured at balls, private functions and corporate events; running weekly comedy nights and appearing on local television.

January 2002 saw him move to Auckland to become resident comedian at the casino in SKYCITY Auckland. His weekly show, the NCB Comedy Hour, is now in its fourth year and continues to push the boundaries of comedy performance with its blend of circus skill and vaudeville style.

In March 2008, Wills took his show The Boy With Tape On His Face to the Melbourne Comedy Festival, where it received great critical acclaim. After Melbourne, he moved to London. A modern mime who didn't advertise his act as such, he still wore the striped shirt.

Wills met his wife-to-be, English burlesque performer Felicity Redman (also known as Lili La Scala), in 2007.[5] They got engaged during the 2008 World Buskers Festival in Christchurch. They had a "symbolic wedding" on 9 January 2009 in Christchurch as a start to that year's World Buskers Festival in the same spot on the banks of the Avon River where they got engaged a year earlier. This was followed by a legal wedding later that year in England.[6] Their first son, Rafferty Basil Danger Wills, was born in January 2013.[5]

Notable performances

File:Sam Wills Covent Garden May 2009.jpg
Sam Wills performing in Covent Garden, London (May 2009)

Wills performed as the MC of the Late Club at the Auckland Festival in 2005 (AK05) and for First Night at the Aotea Centre. He has also performed at the World Buskers' Festival in 2004, 2005 and 2008. He was a consistent performer on Pulp Comedy,[7] during its three seasons on TV2. He performed on the red carpet for the World Premier of The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King in Wellington. He was the support act for David Strassman's 2003 tour of New Zealand. He has also performed at private functions for the former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark and the King of Tonga George Tupou V. In the UK he made an ITV appearance on Comedy Rocks hosted by Jason Manford (2011), and also appeared at the first ever BBC Comedy Prom at London's Royal Albert Hall on 13 August 2011 (broadcast on BBC 2 on 27 August 2011). On 5 December 2011 he performed at the 83rd annual Royal Variety Performance, alongside Tim Minchin and others. In the Season 11 premiere of America's Got Talent on May 31, 2016, he auditioned and got through to the next round.[8]

Awards

  • In 2001, Wills received Pulp Comedy's Best New Face Award.
  • In 2002, he received the Best Marketing award from the New Zealand International Comedy Festival.
  • In 2005, he received New Zealand's highest comedy honours, the Billy T Award for his show Dance Monkey Dance: The Evolution of Sam Wills and the "Best Show" award from the New Zealand Comedy Guild.
  • In 2006, he received the "Best Show" and "Best Show Concept" awards from the New Zealand Comedy Guild.
  • In 2007, he received the "Best Show" and "Best Show Concept" awards from the New Zealand Comedy Guild as well as the "Best Poster" and "Best Show Auckland" awards at the New Zealand International Comedy Festival.
  • In 2008, he received the "Peoples Choice" award at the World Buskers Festival and the Groggy Squirrel Readers Award at the Melbourne Comedy Festival. He was also nominated for the 'Best Newcomer' at the Melbourne Comedy Festival.
  • In 2011 he won best breakthrough act at chortle live comedy awards 2011 as 'The Boy With Tape On His Face'
  • He was also on the Royal Variety Performance 2011.
  • In 2012 he was nominated for the prestigious Fred Award in the New Zealand International Comedy Festival as 'The Boy With Tape On His Face'.


References

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External links

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