Having never had the honour of visiting Crawley’s Hawth Theatre before, it was difficult to know what to expect upon arrival at Omid Djalili’s Schmuck for a Night performance.

And what an introduction; the theatre’s pantomime set served as the backdrop for the comedian, juxtaposed against Djalili’s twinkling lights and a large antique carpet rug (playing up to Middle Eastern stereotypes). Comedian-singer-songwriter Boothby Graffoe opened the show, his surreal, guitar-led sense of humour warming the crowd up nicely.

Having worked with Djalili for more than a decade, he knew exactly which buttons to press with the audience, poking fun at his friend (who would proceed to wave two fingers into view from behind the curtain) and seamlessly moving from one gag to the next. It was a pleasure to see such camaraderie between the two before our main act had even taken the stage.

Of course, a support act can only last so long, and soon the man we had all been waiting for took the stage. Between clever wordplay, silly jibes and bringing a refreshing perspective to cultural observation through anecdotes of his Iranian heritage, Djalili demonstrated in minutes why he remains such a success on the stand-up circuit.

Throughout his performance, he was equal parts astute and audacious, tacit and tenacious, a true performer. He touched on politics and current affairs with unhindered fervour, summed up generational divides with flawless narration and awarded the audience with bursts of dancing which broke up his routine at impeccably timed intervals.

A perfectly balanced performance all round, Omid Djalili’s full and hearty return to the Hawth only served to prove what we suspected all along. Djalili’s energy is far bigger than venues like this can contain.