It was clear things had gotten loose when I looked to the front of the stage at the Cremorne Orpheum, and a drunk Harry Bryant was offering life advice to a row of attentive teenagers. As the MC of the Q and A for ‘Snapt 5’ it was really my job to manage the talent, but there was no holding Harry back. The mop-haired wild-man was several beers deep – giddy with a heady cocktail of alcohol, exultation and relief after watching his own show-stopper section amongst others in ‘Snapt 5’.
As Harry morphed into the lovechild of an evangelical preacher, motivational speaker and stand-up-comedian, all I could do was sit back and watch from centre-stage – the runaway Harry train had bolted in the classically designed Orpheum cinema, with more than half a thousand people watching.
There may have been a few pensive parents, and a freaked-out theatre technician who was sure Harry was going to drop the very-expensive microphone he was holding, but the truth is Harry pulled it off. If you’re going to be drunk on stage, make sure you’re also entertaining; and Harry certainly was.
On screen, a few minutes earlier, we’d watched Harry roll into shimmering second-reef Pipe teepees, splintering the pack as he drag-raced through gaping funnels. The crowd had hooted at Harry’s tube-riding mastery, now they were laughing at his stand-up antics.
Harry’s good mate Noa Deane was also on stage, bigger in stature but not quite as large a presence – until you saw him take off. Noa’s medley of heaving carves, sun-tickler airs and knuckled barrels ensured his was one of the most savoured sections of ‘Snapt 5’. Sadly, director Logan ‘Chucky’ Dulien had announced it was his last installation of the series every freesurfer wants a part in.
‘Snapt 5’ featured many waves that inspired roars of delight, but for mine there were a few surfers whose sections elevated them beyond the others – Clay Marzo, Ian Crane, Noa Deane, Mason Ho, Harry Bryant and Jack Robinson all possessed something in their edits that put them in another stratosphere.
