While Frankie McNair has a huge ass, huge jokes and even huger stage presence, she is absolutely not a huge ass!
Presented by: Frankie McNair
Reviewed: 20 February, 2026
Frankie McNair bounds onto the stage of Huge Ass Mindset combat boot first, high-kicking her way into the spotlight with the kind of swagger she’s determined to claim for herself. The title is knowingly provocative: McNair may have a “huge ass,” but she is galaxies away from being a huge ass. Instead, her latest show is a fearless, funny and unexpectedly moving interrogation of anxiety, trauma, neurodiversity and the radical act of taking up space.
A relative newcomer, McNair won Best Newcomer at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival in 2022 and has since appeared in multiple Australian Broadcasting Corporation productions while developing work for stage and screen. Yet for all that outward success, she confesses to a long history of low self-esteem and self-sabotage. The show pivots on a question sparked by a recent life-altering event: why do some people shrink themselves so others can loom large? What would happen if, instead, you adopted the brazen confidence of a contestant on the latest Unreality Love At First Marriage Island? Would this “perfect” person apologise for inconveniencing others, for getting things wrong or, indeed, for anything at all? No. No, they would not. Their self-delusion fills the room. Their ass takes ALL the space.
McNair’s experiment is to cultivate that mindset — not cruelty or arrogance, but unapologetic presence. The result is outstandingly honest, at times confronting, but always captivating, entertaining, funny and original. Early content warnings offer audiences the chance to step out, as the show delves into her experience of childhood sexual abuse. That she can joke about such material — and make it feel not just permissible but communal to laugh — is testament to her formidable skill. She deftly exposes how perpetrators weaponise shame to silence victims. While she cheerfully admits to “shameful” habits (a degree in TV bingeing; eating a rogue, melted-and-reformed KitKat), being abused as a child is not one of them. The distinction lands powerfully.
Before you imagine a bleak hour, be assured: Huge Ass Mindset is anything but depressing. McNair’s buoyant energy is infectious, even through a flicker of opening-night nerves. Her “wrong funny” riff on the Seinfeld-style one-liner is gloriously subversive; her character work is sharp and elastic. This is more than stand-up. It’s a fully realised comedy performance, blending tight jokes with heightened theatricality and physical gags. A 1930s femme fatale sketch set in a private detective’s office is both deliciously ridiculous and smart satire, showcasing her flair for stylisation.
McNair’s candour and vulnerability won her a devoted new fan in my thirteen-year-old daughter, who chose the show in a bid to support more female comedians at this year’s Fringe. It delivered on its feminist promise and then some. We sat riveted, moved, and laughing — proof that Frankie McNair doesn’t just have a huge ass mindset, she has the huge ass talent to back it up.
Ultimately, the most striking aspect to this show is McNair’s strength of self, deftly woven through its fabric. The warning that came early materialises in a finale that is challenging of performer and audience but worth the slog for its uplifting payoff. This is one brave woman, typed without a hint of pathos or “air quotes”. And while it shows her individual grit, it also demonstrates the power of a supportive, loving community. Perhaps the takeaway message is that you alone can make your ass huge, but a community of huge asses is unstoppable.
Reviewed by Samantha Bond
Venue: Criterion at The Garden of Unearthly Delights
Season: 17 Feb – 01 March
Duration: 60 min
Tickets: $25 to $35
Bookings: https://adelaidefringe.com.au/fringetix/frankie-mcnair-huge-ass-mindset-af2026
