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June 8, 2009
Andy Ross's Melancomedy @ The PIT - 6.5.09
By: Abbi Crutchfield
Andy Ross | Photo: Abbi Crutchfield
Ever see a rodeo clown in a bar fight? Ever watch a newscaster crack under pressure? Ever stare at a sobbing Baby Boomer? These joys are yours if you watch Melancomedy, a one-man show by writer and comedian Andy Ross. The show, updated from its February debut, consists of 10 characters confiding in the audience throughout a dozen vignettes, transitioned by a subtle soundtrack that plays during a slideshow of caricatures. It is not just a compilation of funny monologues; it is a parade of realistic and complex personalities -- people we could know -- whose vices and failures pull viewers into an uncomfortably familiar world. The folks are funny because they, as the author puts it, "find humor in the minor key of everyday life." Take the friendless middle schooler who shyly recruits the audience to join German Club. His pitch ("We'll translate, like, whatever you want!") reeks of desperation. Or take the chatty office tease who scoffs at the affections of her widowed co-worker -- she is just the kind you would loathe from a restroom stall. And you almost sympathize with the yuppie who drones on about her dietary restrictions, "It's nice to have something I can call my own ... even though it is a gluten allergy."
One of Ross's gifts is to create real people through mannerisms, accents and very sharp writing. In a brown button-down and jeans, he uses a single article per costume change (a pair of glasses on a chain, a backpack, a mop). And as realistic as these characters might seem, they're not always so grounded. There is Charlie Douglas, the hapless news anchor who's constantly fooled into giving the wrong scoop, and Hill County's sexiest husband who lets winning a male beauty pageant go to his head. The most memorable, though, is Kathy the middle-aged college student with the Wisconsin accent who gives away action toys to her classmates. The bits are varied in length, some with 30 seconds to the punch line and some with prolonged serious moments, which reflect Ross's Second City roots. But miserable as they are, they make you giggle. You're glad you're not them.
--Abbi Crutchfield is a standup comic and co-producer of The Living Room.
THE PLUG
• Don't miss Andy Ross's Melancomedy THURS, JUNE 11, 18 & 25 @ 8PM at The PIT! | Tickets
• Andy Ross's Official Web site
Posted by keithhuang in Show Recap at 11:30 AM | Comments (0)
May 18, 2009
Jill Donnelly: Amnesia and Attempted Murder in Upstate NY @ The UCBT - 5.6.09
Jill Donnelly | Photo: Abbi Crutchfield
For people who like sad, sappy dramas about comatose patients there's Awakenings. But for those who think it's funny, there's Jill Donnelly's one-woman show "Amnesia and Attempted Murder in Upstate NY." The family and friends of Jane, a hospitalized-amnesiac who has suffered a terrible fall, come together to videotape their greetings and theorize who might be responsible for the victim's bed-ridden state. Donnelly plays every family member, friend, co-worker and neighbor, displaying an impressive range of accents, dialects and mannerisms. Though one should expect nothing less from a woman who began her comedy career after studying neuroscience in college.
In 30 minutes, Donnelly serves up 10 characters and costume changes, a Cockney accent, a cloaked nerd, a hyena laugh, the rambling of a 5-year-old, the advice of a pushy doctor and a plethora of sharp-witted jokes. The credit for the meticulously crafted humor is shared with co-creator and director, Amy Flanagan.
Donnelly's versatile performance even includes soulful a capella (as the no-nonsense co-worker who takes a moment to serenade the victim), melodious piano playing (as the explosive Southern recluse with five first names) and a montage of song parodies on the keyboard.
So whodunnit? The silent husband is a suspect, as is the resentful and jealous sister Karen, who calms herself by slapping her thighs and shouting to the beat. But the victim's son, a college freshman and wizardry enthusiast, speculates that it was an accident, and looks forward to the day she can tell his friends about what it is like to be half-dead. With unexpected laughs and macabre surprises, Amnesia and Attempted Murder serves as smelling salts to even the most unresponsive brain.
-- Abbi Crutchfield is a standup comic and co-producer of The Living Room.
THE PLUG
• Don't miss Amnesia and Attempted Murder WEDS, MAY 20 @ 8PM at The UCB-New York! | R eservations
Posted by keithhuang in Show Recap at 11:00 AM | Comments (0)
May 15, 2009
The Toxic Avenger @ New World Stages - 4.29.9
NOTES
--A few weeks ago, we were invited to a special Blogger's Night showing of The Toxic Avenger musical, a raucous staging of Troma's cult movie featuring music by "one of the founding members of Bon Jovi." (Not Bon Jovi.)
--Upon entrance to the theater space, a lady stopped us and probed, "Are you a blogger?" She seemed genuinely interested in meeting such a creature. She was welcoming us to the "Tox-Box," which wasn't a toxic waste splash-zone like we imagined. Instead, on this night, it was a shadowy haven for leering tumblrs, twitterers, and live journalers. Some had notepads. Others smelled like mayonnaise. All looked very suspicious.
--The show was super fun. Aside from the great tunes about how New Jersey blows, they cleverly employed all these geeky theatre tricks THAT WOWED OUR SOCKS RIGHT OFF. One song had a character fighting and sing-battling on stage with her secondary role through the use of the theatre device known as "madcap costume changes." It was neat.
--The lead actress, Sarah Chase, played the role of "Jen" in last year's run of Jen and Angie at The UCBT.
--We were telling someone later that we had just gone to a Broadway show and they were all, "That's not Broadway, that's Off-Broadway." And we were like, "It sure looked like a Broadway musical to us." The schooling began: Apparently neither location, budget, nor the presence of a Playbill has anything to do with a show's Broadway status. If a theater has 500 seats or more, it's On-Broadway. End of discussion. More info here.
Now through July 31st, The Toxic Avenger is offering specially priced $45 tickets if you click here and use this offer code: TOBLOG409
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 9:30 AM | Comments (0)
April 13, 2009
Donald Glover: WEIRDO @ The UCBT - 4.9.9
By: Merritt Gurley
Donald Glover | Photo: griepp
It is a rare moment when Donald Glover's wide smile fades. And even then it seems like he's got the next one brewing. The man is walking pop rocks--he crackles with young energy that gets the audience all worked up. His one man show "Weirdo" sold out UCB last Thursday night, cluttering the aisles and the stairways with tight jeans and edgy haircuts. But even with the large chunk of comedyphiles to be expected at any UCB show, there was an unusual mix of races and ages, a testament to his wide appeal, all sitting at attention while Glover darted across the stage, his shiny gold Pumas catching the light like fishing lures.
25-year-old Glover, the youngest writer on 30 Rock and a member of the YouTube-famed sketch group Derrick, spent Thursday afternoon twittering a picture of what he planned to wear for his one man show debut--a fitted pink shirt v-neck shirt, a matching clunky pink plastic watch and belted jeans. So I wasn't shocked to find a good chunk of his material was an exploration of what it meant to be a "black nerd." His dead on impressions of Tracy Morgan, Chris Rock, Barack Obama, Richard Pryor and pinpointing the signature nerd traits of Lil' Wayne and Kanye West had the crowd rolling. Glover jumped from hyper-personal stories to sweeping reflections on racial stereotypes and expectations so seamlessly you're never taken out of his narrative. The hour was packed full of impressions, insights and anecdotes, but it flew by like a casual conversation.
Glover tells us about growing up in Atlanta, Georgia in a house full of foster kids. He plays his mother, cousin, and siblings with hilarious and touching hyperbole. It is likely that few in the audience grew up with foster siblings and a trash-talking Mom, but most people can relate to messing with a younger brother or getting in trouble for cluttering up the house. Glover has a gift for making his very personal and often unusual childhood antics relate to larger commonalities. Although it wasn't until hours after the show had ended that it hit me how sad some of the stories were. Glover described his cousin who was born with HIV and used her illness as an excuse to duck out of chores. The timing was perfect, the punchlines were smooth, but holy mackerel--it takes a special kind of charm to make childhood AIDS funny. And Glover's got it.
RELATED
An AUDIO segment from the show
Donald @ CollegeHumor Live in January '09
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 6:17 PM | Comments (3)
March 19, 2009
Ann Carr: Use It @ UCBT - 3.12.9
By: Abbi Crutchfield
Ann Carr | Photo: Anya Garrett
And the Oscar goes to ... not you. Probably not ever. But maybe the secret to your success is watching instead of winning. Enter Ann Carr, actress and comedian, who feels your pain and tells you what to do with it in her latest one-woman show, Use It.
Employing an unconventionally limited number of characters, Carr offers a glimpse inside the world of struggling actors and explores what hinders and motivates them. From your seat, you take part in the show, enduring the (day job) office drone, "My son's bar mitzvah theme is TMZ..." and waiting to audition with an overrated seven-year-old coached by his mega-mouth mother. As an Academy Award-winner who blanks on stage and forgets her husband's name, Ann Carr becomes both a stereotype and someone convincing. As a weepy Starbucks patron who is at the end of her auditioning rope, Carr creates a sympathetic reflection of every starving artist who has hit rock bottom. You get more than one version of this tearful despair in the show, which is a testament to both Carr's range and the fickleness of show business.
The strength of this show lies in Carr's energy and chops, though continuity and blocking kudos go to director (and fellow UCB darling) Eliza Skinner, who ties the vignettes with good music, well-timed fade-outs and staged call-backs through physicality and costume, in addition to dialogue. The show has had an extended run, paired with Jill Donnelly's Amnesia and Attempted Murder. And another sign of the show's success since its February debut was the number of notable comedians it drew in the crowd: Andres du Bouchet, Mike Dobbins, Adira Amram, Vicki Ferentinos and Seth Herzog. The show could leave you feeling just as jaded about fame as you already are, but no less inspired by the journey.
--Abbi Crutchfield is a standup comic and co-producer of The Living Room.
RELATED
• Catch Ann Carr: Use It THURS, MARCH 26 @ 8PM at The UCBT | Tickets
• Inside With: Ann Carr, Character Actress
Posted by keithhuang in Show Recap at 3:00 PM | Comments (3)
March 10, 2009
The 2008 ECNY Awards @ Comix - 3.9.9
Joselyn Hughes presents Best Performance in a Commercial or Episode of Law and Order to Matt McCarthy | Photos: Keith Huang
Congratulations to everyone who won a 2008 ECNY Award last night at Comix. As previous winners noted, your life will no longer be the same though your comedy career will be. The Big Apple's comedy illuminati gathered to celebrate All Things Funny. Here are the glorious winners.
^ Kurt Braunohler & Kristen Schaal
^ Nick Kocher and Brian McElhaney of BriTANick
THE WINNERS
Best Female Standup Comedian: Michelle Collins
Best Host: Leo Allen
Best Improv Group: Mother
Best Male Standup Comedian: Kumail Nanjiani
Best Musical Comedy Act (Solo or Group): Reggie Watts
Best One Person Show: Kumail Nanjiani's "Unpronounceable"
Best Short Comedic Film: Sara Benincasa & Diana Saez
Best Sketch Comedy Group: Derrick
Best Technician: Pat Baer
Best Variety Show: The Rejection Show
Emerging Comic Award: Lennon Parham
Outstanding Achievement in Flyer or Postcard Design: Anya Garrett -- Jar Full of Roaches (Show)
Best Website: UCBComedy.com
Best Performance in a Commercial or Episode of Law and Order: Matt McCarthy -- Verizon FIOS
Lifetime Achievement Award -- The Writing Staff of Late Night with Conan O'Brien
NOTES
--Some of this year's winners have already become HIGHLY SOUGHT AFTER BIGSHOTS: Kumail and Lennon Parham were unable to claim their trophies because they were out shopping/working in Los Angeles.
--Speaking of LA, it looks like everything's going great for Nick Kroll over there.
--SPOTTED: Thanks to the live Twitterfall of the event, the room learned that Rachel Kramer Bussel was sitting next to Michael Musto. Also heard several people shrieking something to the effect of "OMG, Jake and Amir are here!"
--Pat Baer shattered the previous ECNY world record set by him by capturing his third award for Best Technician.
--The Best Sketch category brought in the most votes from the general public this year. But it was the Best Host that had the slimmest margin of victory: Leo Allen and 2 runners up were separated by just a few tenths of a percentage point.
--Eugene Mirman won an auction to present an award. The winning bid was $2.
^ Mark Normand and Sean Patton
^ Chris "Shockwave" Sullivan
^ Ilana and Eliot Glazer
^ Mamrie Hart and Steve Soroka
^ Chris Gethard and Charlie Sanders
^ Murderfist
^ Danny Leary and Leah Dubie
^ Glennis McMurray (I Eat Pandas) and Brandon Gardner (Bastian)
Continue reading "The 2008 ECNY Awards @ Comix - 3.9.9"
Posted by keithhuang in Show Recap at 12:29 PM | Comments (2)
February 24, 2009
Jennifer Dziura: What Philosophy Majors Do After College @ Ars Nova - 2.19.9
By: Abbi Crutchfield
Photo: Abbi Crutchfield
The shame of a corndog-class upbringing has fueled more than one career in New York City and comedian Jen Dziura's is no exception. In her one-person show, What Philosophy Majors Do After College, Jen wrestles with finding a professional purpose that measures up to her Ivy degree and Mensa membership card. Getting a desk job was easy. Pretending it was enjoyable was hard.
She began in her apartment, striking a dialogue with a bust of Socrates (who responded in voiceover). Fans of Dziura's popular live quiz shows could enjoy her trademark wit and enthusiasm for epistemology. Through the teachings of over a dozen famous philosophers (whose ponderings were illustrated via slides of pop culture icons), Dziura shared the key stages of her life that define her today. Her disdain for multi-level marketing was reflected in teen angst towards her mother, "If you could make $50,000 a year selling Avon you'd be a millionaire in a real business." She lamented her inclination to wear dress shoes at the beach in her college years, a self-proclaimed "Richard Nixon in a world of JFKs," but stood behind her pragmatic approach to feminism, "People give horrible [professional] advice to women ... The Fortune 500 is entirely free of people who make things out of yarn." Her story on donating herself to science for money was both hilarious and heart wrenching, as was hearing about the troops in Kuwait whose night of watching her perform may have been their last.
Dziura's topic is relatable to most floundering twenty-somethings, especially those of us who decided not to be brokers. Her show has substance, heart, and rapid-fire laughs. It's a gripping college lecture without a windbag professor."
Abbi Crutchfield is a standup comic and co-producer of The Living Room.
RELATED
Inside With: Jen Dziura
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February 17, 2009
Unmarketable @ The UCBT - 2.16.9
By: Abbi Crutchfield
There is a new slideshow presentation in town, and here to narrate it is comedian and writer David Angelo. In his latest creative endeavor, Unmarketable, Angelo skewered print advertising by dissecting its most confusing and condescending images. The format was more of a lecture than a one-man-show, but it was not short on laughs. As Angelo explained off the bat to the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater's full house, "Like any other alternative comedy show, I'm very PowerPoint heavy." Angelo dropped his characteristic one-liner style that makes him stand out as a stand-up and spoke directly, point-by-sarcastic-point, about his problem with today's ads. In a t-shirt and jeans, he was not in character, but he seemed to adopt the persona of a knowledgeable yet melancholic union organizer.
When clicking to an Evian ad featuring a nude woman he explained that it is not necessary to use sex to sell water, since it is something we need to survive. He supported this theory by clicking to an ad he created, a picture of a bikini-clad Carmen Electra with the caption, "Food Prevents Death."
Funny observations were punctuated by serious insights. Angelo posited that the people who do market research are the worst people in the world. He encouraged the audience to imagine just what kind of monster would have the time to rate an inconsequential Twix ad. He highlighted the hypocritical (Dove and Axe have different messages for women but are owned by the same company) and the asinine (a strawberry diet pill that reassures us it is grapefruit-free?!), and made time for a trip back to Earth. "Just for reference, let's look at what's going on in the rest of the world," (stills of Middle-Eastern civilians crying flashed on the screen) "...oh yeah. Suffering."
There was even a message against the dangers of overspending woven in, which made everyone feel like MC Hammer. The performance ended with the same toothpaste ad viewers saw at the beginning, a woman holding a Photoshopped, long, minty glob between her fingers like floss. "We all have a different vision of Utopia, folks. Whatever yours is, I promise that's not it." Unmarketable made me laugh and think, and best of all, I did not have to raise my hand at the end or participate in any brainstorming sessions.
RELATED
The David Angelo Radio Show - Tuesdays and Thursdays at 8PM
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 4:40 PM | Comments (6)
January 26, 2009
The New Deal @ The PIT - 1.22.9
In response to these uncertain economic times, the three guys of the young sketch group The New Deal offer relief in the form of their latest show, A False Sense of Social Security.
NOTES
--Typically within every sketch group is a member who's a little bit more over the top than the others. Alex Demers is that guy in The New Deal, who fits and pops like milk on crispy breakfast rice. In each scene, he's generally either howling, cackling, or leaping onto tables. Rather unsurprisingly, in TND's press packet, we noticed that Demers' resume lists "Dance Training in Break-dance," "Ability as Gymnast," and "Fake Vomiting" among his special skills.
--One sketch depicting a fireside chat with FDR and his radio sidekick/foley artist, J. Edgar Hoover, taught us that lettuce violently explodes when it is punched.
--We weren't sure going in if there was a market for FDR humor, but a sizable crowd came out to see them. The PIT must've taken notice of this too and offered them one more date on February 5th. TND's Noah Forman intends to keep the comedy ball rolling after that. He tells us, "We are currently working on our next sketch show as we speak, so hopefully we can have it up in a couple months. In the meantime, we are going to workshop new sketches and perform improv whenever possible. We also are currently planning on a couple videos to be shot in the next few weeks."
Alex Demers and Dru Johnston out for a joyride
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 3:59 PM | Comments (4)
December 15, 2008
Statues of Liberty @ The Magnet Theatre - 12.13.8
By: Phil Wells
Peter McNerney, Russ Armstrong, & Nick Kanellis play for "the Liberty"
Statues of Liberty have secured themselves a steady run of shows on Saturday nights at the Magnet, and it's easy to see why. Touted all over the net as "an amalgam of New York and Chicago styles of improv," they put on a slick longform show with organic sound-and-movement edits that actually manage to not seem forced. One scene melts into another quickly enough that the artifice isn't exposed. The players have lots of trust and respect for each other, and the edits are carried out with zero hesitation.
The scenes are equally fearless. Peter McNerney, Nick Kanellis and Russ Armstrong really know how to physicalize the comedy and make sure that when the story moves, it really MOVES. The actors transformed into everything from a colony of ants to a back-room full of obese lotharios to a fridge full of various milks and juices. Just as effective were the subtle changes made to play more human characters. A scene between a mother and her awkward son was downright moving, and they used the pathos generated by those moments to pay big comedic dividends later in the show. These Statues know how to craft a narrative.
It'd be easy to let a show like this get away from you. Being three guys performing a loosely structured, organically edited form is a tricky situation to be in. For one thing, it's tough to pull off. And for another, you can't spit on the sidewalk in Chelsea without hitting another "tiny" improv group. Still, in a crowded field, Statues of Liberty are an example for the rest to follow. They're smart, physical, and a lot of fun.
Phil Wells is an actor, writer, and member of comedy groups SidViscous! and Finger. His book, Try the Veal, is available at Amazon.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 3:36 PM | Comments (0)
December 12, 2008
John Hodgman @ The Barnes & Noble in Park Slope - 12.10.8
As the din of Hodgmania roars across America, John comes home to Park Slope for this, the final stop on his More Information Than You Require book tour.
NOTES
--A large, bookish audience eagerly filled out the downstairs area, forcing the store's usual crowd of itinerant youths and aimless drifters to find some other floorspace to secrete on. As 7:30 approached, with still no sign of Hodgman, he tweeted "am on the way. 7th ave & 8 street. Tell the chairs" and all with iPhones were relieved. His reading advisory would prove to be pretty accurate.
--John asked if anyone had a copy of Areas of My Expertise, and if so, could he or she toss it up to him. Instead of catching the book with his hands, Hodgman offered only an outstretched foot with which to kick it. In an instant, a Random Audience Member's cherished paperback fell to the floor with a slight crease and a dull slap, a transformation from Near Mint condition to Fine before our very eyes. Hodgman denounced Areas of My Expertise as old technology and railed against its uselessness. With another Random Audience Member's precious MITYR hardcover, Hodgman showed off the book's day-by-day calendar feature and ripped pages out, thus reducing it to Poor.
--Disappointed he wasn't allowed to have a Q&A at his Manhattan signing, John offered to entertain all intellectual curiosities with an extended session here, including a Jim Cramer-style lightning round. Could he recommend a nice place to eat in Park Slope? Little D. Does he have any female celebrity crushes? Rachel Maddow. Can he pass some underage girl's number on to Justin Long? No.
--Hodgman revealed forthcoming roles in Battlestar Galactica and Ricky Gervais' next movie, This Side of the Truth.
--It's never a dull day at the Park Slope Barnes and Noble: signs heralded the coming of Dr. Ruth the following night.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 1:38 PM | Comments (1)
November 25, 2008
Joe Powers Healing Blowout - 11.20.8
By: Abbi Crutchfield
SING ALONG WITH COLIN "You're comedians. You don't give a f---" --Colin Quinn | Photo: Abbi Crutchfield
Last Thursday, Gotham Comedy Club filled to capacity to benefit New York comedian Joe Powers, who suffered serious injuries from a fall last August. Featuring an all-star lineup, the Blowout was hosted by Meg Cupernall and Mara Herron. The crowd included many comics, creating a situation that performers either consider challenging or comforting. But Arj Barker's first line "There's a lot of pirates now," was met with applause -- a sure sign the audience was ready for fun.
Continue reading "Joe Powers Healing Blowout - 11.20.8
By: Abbi Crutchfield"
Posted by keithhuang in Show Recap at 3:25 PM | Comments (2)
November 17, 2008
Human Painkiller @ UCBT
By: Abbi Crutchfield
MR. WILLIAMS & ME Will Violet Krumbein's unorthodox methods of healing be successful? | Photo: Anya Garrett
If the theme song to "Sanford & Son" doesn't get you in a silly mood, watching a woman make out with herself will. In "Human Painkiller," UCB alum Violet Krumbein creates a world where hilariously insensitive characters interact with a cloying protagonist who just wants to make people happy. Krumbein begins by playing two people: A Holly-Hunter inspired-lesbian bar owner named Joyce, and Jezebel, the naive star of the show who seeks to provide joy to an invalid using her wits and good vibrations.
Wearing a black leotard, black tights and a gold miniskirt, Krumbein assumes more than half a dozen characters with minimal costume changes that involve hats or moustaches on a stick. Most characters come to life by their accents and mannerisms alone.
Continue reading "Human Painkiller @ UCBT
By: Abbi Crutchfield"
Posted by keithhuang in Show Recap at 11:00 AM | Comments (1)
November 14, 2008
Russell Brand @ El Teatro del Museo del Barrio - 11.13.8
Last night, UK superstar Russell Brand taped a 1-hour special for Comedy Central at El Teatro del Museo del Barrio, a whimsically classy theater space on the Upper East Side. Tonight, Russell gives a repeat performance and CC will splice together a perfect set.
NOTES
--It seems that this special is essentially a primer for US audiences to get to know Russell Brand. He hits on major points appealing to our limited exposure to him, like how he's really famous everywhere but here, his experiences hosting the VMAs, and a half hour about how he's totally not gay despite the fact you spend the first half hour of his set thinking, "He's totally gay, right?" Even though he sashays around the stage like a grotto nymph, whipping his microphone cord like Morrissey, that doesn't stop him from soliciting the female members of the audience for threesomes.
--A MORE PERFECT POST?: Russell had a really funny bit about The Daily Mail, a sleazy UK Tabloid which injects humiliation and dour, nihilistic adjectives into all their stories. One Mail story depicted him "slumped" and "flicking channels" in a "rented" Hollywood house. Russell failed to mention a recent row he's involved in that got him suspended from his BBC radio show and sparked a national uproar.
--Okay, so yesterday we linked to a Village Voice listing of this show just because it had the show details... but we didn't actually read the description before linking. On the subway ride to El Barrio last night, we paged thru the VV print edition and stopped cold in our leafing after seeing what was written:
Smokey Robinson cemented Motown genius when he wrote of "the tears of a clown, when there's no one around." Alas, I haven't gotten my keen hands on U.K. comic comer Russell Brand's My Booky Wook, but it's clear his quasi-DeQuincey-meets-Dickens autobiography seconds Smokey's emotions. This season's supreme trickster possesses boundless ambition and puts a meta-rockist spin on a long tradition of English dry wit that's made him a darling of the 2000s remix of the late Donald Cammell's Chelsea set. Yet America's a far different, anti-intellectual beastie, darlin', and it remains to be seen whether our Russell's bling-sharp brilliance and rapid-fire vocal deployment of subcultural Molotovs can truly translate in the colonies. The Forgetting Sarah Marshall triumph aside, here's hoping he instigates a trend of emerging jesters armed with the lost art of timing, and unafraid-to-be-grown folks addressing their pain and pleasure to same. -- Kandia Crazy Horse
What. The. [Expletive]. Is. This? Kandia Crazy Horse, we'll give you the benefit of the doubt that Crazy Horse really is your last name, but given our barely sufficient understanding of Russell's ouevre, this write-up must either be the most accurate description of him ever committed to paper or IT'S UNHINGED PSEUDOINTELLECTUAL PSYCHOBABBLE AT ITS WORST. The Smokey Robinson analogy is a bit unclear... and Donald Cammell's Chelsea set? Oh, you mean that Chelsea? Is this how they teach you to write in Native America, Kandia??
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 2:57 PM | Comments (1)
November 10, 2008
A Potentially Regrettable Evening with The Daily Show Writers @ The Paley Center - 11.7.8
By: Sharilyn Johnson
L-R: Jason Ross, John Oliver, Adam Lowitt, Rob Kutner, DJ Javerbaum, and moderator David Remnick
For a group of men forced to watch CNN as much these guys, you'd expect to catch at least a faint whiff of broken spirits coming off the Daily Show's creative team. Not so in the case of producers DJ Javerbaum, Rory Albanese, and Adam Lowitt; writers Tim Carvell, J.R. Havlan, Rob Kutner, Jason Ross, and Steve Bodow; and correspondent/writers Wyatt Cenac and John Oliver. Perhaps it was just the relief of the election being over, but at this potentially regrettable evening at the Paley Center, the discussion showed no signs of world-weariness. Just a bunch of guys acting very much like a bunch of comedy writers: hilarious, remarkably quick, and making us wonder if science is any closer to perfecting Jeff Goldblum's telepod so we can spend our lives hanging out on the writers' room wall.
Among the clips presented was John Oliver's piece from the DNC, previously discussed by Samantha Bee at the New Yorker Festival. Oliver's discomfort was apparent while he watched himself chant "Osama" amid a group of Obama supporters, and afterwards he confirmed the difficulty of experiencing a real moment of history with the sole purpose of undermining it. "You have to remember why you're there, and sort of man up a bit," he said.
If you want to be on The Daily Show, just be yourself. Albanese scouted Cenac at a Los Angeles audition, and was taken by how strongly his personality came through. He said that too many people come into a Daily Show audition trying to play a slick newscaster. Cenac's first aired piece was one he'd written up as part of the hiring process. The line that got the Daily Show folks excited? "I'm bored."
Continue reading "A Potentially Regrettable Evening with The Daily Show Writers @ The Paley Center - 11.7.8
By: Sharilyn Johnson"
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 12:29 PM | Comments (2)
October 30, 2008
Killgore: The Resurrection @ The UCBT - 10.29.8
Zach Woods helps deliver a bouncing bundle of joy in Killgore: The Resurrection, the UCBT's high-budget Halloween splattershow.
NOTES
--Using Craigslist, Zach Woods lures a cadre of unsuspecting lame people to his apartment so that he can kill them and cast a spell to summon the merciless demon Killgore. Zach is perfect in the role; he's so chilling yet his deadpan pun delivery hits the funzone every time one of his victims perishes.
--Everyone dies in really bloody and graphically hilarious ways. A fat slob has half-eaten donuts fed back to her from her ripped open stomach, a porn star gets dis-membered, and a musical duo finds its gear to be instrumental to their deaths.
--Killgore is pretty awesome. Schlock-horror fans will eat it up. It's the sort of show that deserves a 3 week dedicated run somewhere as opposed to just 3 days.
--If you're wondering why the show is $15 instead of the standard $5 or $10, it's because all audience members receive a complimentary FASHION PONCHO which can either be used for preventing blood from getting all over you during the performance OR saved for a rainy day. The ticket also covers the cost of exploding blood packets, repainting the set white after every show, a giant prosthetic dong, and dry-cleaning.
--The teaser video for Killgore is ace too, great graphics and a catchy tune you'll be humming no doubt. Table for Killgore!
Charlie Sanders and Eugene Cordero lighten the mood with some crowd work
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 2:33 PM | Comments (0)
October 28, 2008
Lead McEnroe @ The Magnet Theater - 10.24.8
By: Phil Wells
Lead McEnroe is Mike Barry, Nick Benaquista, Tim Eberle, Dan Scivoletti and Rob Williams. They are directed by The Magnet's Alex Marino.
Improv troupe Lead McEnroe performed "Songs of the Cul-De-Sac" last Friday at The Magnet Theater, improvising no less than 35 distinct scenes in a 45-minute show.
In the hands of a lesser group, this could have quickly spiraled out of control, but Lead is a capable cast of patient, collaborative players. A handful of situations are introduced at the top of the act, and the rest of the show doesn't veer too far away from the established material. At its heart, "Songs" is a character exploration. Nearly every edit was a tag-out, keeping the most interesting character on stage each time.
Using this method, these guys gave life and depth to a knife-wielding grandma, a barbershop tenor who destroys hotel rooms, and a stable of the most useless cops since The Big Rock Candy Mountain, among plenty of others. This was no studied retreading of archetypes, but a fearless character-creation machine. Even the animals in this show had personality. And, yes, there was some singing (but it's not a musical).
HIGHLIGHTS:
• Grandma Martha's prison bitch goes to hold her pocket only to find an old Werthers stuck there.
• "I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that's not a sheep at all."
• "Blue is heavier than red. ROY G BIV."
• Only one student attends a community college art class, and he is harassed by the entire faculty.
Phil Wells is an actor, writer, and member of comedy groups SidViscous! and Finger. His book, Try the Veal, is available at Amazon. He also maintains the oft-defunct movie review blog RexBaxter.com.
Posted by keithhuang in Show Recap at 12:30 PM | Comments (0)
October 16, 2008
David O'Doherty @ Whiplash at The UCBT - 10.13.8
Whiplash is the successor to the long-running and FREE Monday night UCBT show Crash Test. Host Leo Allen presented Sarah Silverman writer Harris Wittels, Dave Hill, Todd Barry, and a rare stateside set by the 2008 If.comedy Main Prize winner David O'Doherty.
NOTES
--What does it take to clinch the If.comedy (formerly Perrier) award at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival? We've had the pleasure of seeing live perhaps ten previous winners or nominees and there are clearly common threads connecting David O'Doherty and all the rest. In O'Doherty, you see Demetri Martin's penchant for kooky instruments, an approach to weaving stand up and songs straight out of Tim Minchin's toolbox, and a smattering of Daniel Kitson's intellectual curiosity. Despite these comparisons, David has a rapid, but not frantic, gait to his storytelling that's charming and fresh.
--Several of DOD's jokes are long and tend to split off into tangents before returning back to the mainline. One of these was a scholarly rundown of the Top 5 funniest things of all time. According to him, 58008 on a calculator ranks really high up there.
--O'Doherty had to pay extra in airline baggage fees to fly all of his Casio keyboards over. :(
--WATCH: Comedy Live Presents: The Best of David O'Doherty
--Show promoters on the AST message boards said they couldn't announce David as a guest because he was having work visa issues. Since you don't need a visa to tell jokes for free at the UCBT, one can assume he's here to shoot something. What else is David working, er, volunteering on?
--STRANGE BUT TRUE: One of these guys below is Harry Shearer. The other is David O'Doherty. WHICH IS WHICH?
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 4:09 PM | Comments (1)
October 6, 2008
The New Yorker Festival's Political Humor Panel @ Cathedral NYC - 10.4.8
By: Sharilyn Johnson
Borowitz, Silverman, Hanson, and Downey
On Saturday afternoon, The New Yorker Festival brought comedy geeks and middle-aged vegans together at Cathedral NYC to experience words of wisdom from a panel of political comedy gurus, which included Andy Borowitz, Samantha Bee from The Daily Show, The Onion's Todd Hanson, Colbert Report Executive Producer Allison Silverman, and veteran SNL writer/producer Jim Downey.
The proceedings, moderated by New Yorker editor (and former Jim Downey assistant!) Susan Morrison, followed an unsurprising theme from the start: Sarah Palin!
Four best Palin zingers from the panel:
1) Borowitz: "I actually read about her in the Book of Revalations, right after the Four Horsemen."
2) Hanson, apologizing for his scratchy voice: "I've been debating Sarah Palin for the past week."
3) Silverman: "I think Sarah Palin was very brave to come out against holocausts."
Downey: "I did that MONTHS ago."
Borowitz: "She was only against ANOTHER holocaust."
4) Downey: "If she gets elected, it's going to be four years of jokes that have been done NOW."
Providing perhaps the best-ever answer to the ubiquitous "do people get their news from comedy" question, Hanson said "they get their critical thinking ABOUT the news from comedy". Well said, sir.
As I sat there, I wondered, where in the world was John Oliver? The Daily Show correspondent canceled his appearance on the panel to substitute for Jon Stewart at an awards ceremony in Washington (so where in the world was Jon Stewart?). But colleague Sam Bee did the right thing by talking about him behind his back. At the Democratic National Convention, Oliver was given the task of going onto the convention floor during Obama's speech to interrupt people who were trying to watch it. His attempts to elicit annoyance were viewed as just plain hurtful. "He came back with almost nothing," she said. "There was this sense of 'why would you do this on such an important day?' He was mortified."
Bee had her own high-stress Convention piece, where she tried to get Republican delegates to say the word "choice" in the context of Bristol Palin's pregnancy. She said the issue of choice is "very personal" to her, and likened her nervousness when filming it to "when you're driving and you're about to do something really stupid."
Those of us in attendance who didn't arrive looking and feeling like a New Yorker-reader stereotype were given the opportunity to dress the part during our downtime. Festival sponsor Banana Republic gifted the adjacent washrooms with bottles of their line of smelly fragrances. I wondered whether taking a spritz was the classiness equivalent of wearing a restaurant-supplied dresscode-required necktie, until the woman at the sink next to me reported that the night before, someone stole the entire collection of full-size bottles. Those wacky lefties!
RELATED
Stephen Colbert at The New Yorker Festival
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 4:52 PM | Comments (5)
September 16, 2008
The Brooklyn Book Festival @ Brooklyn Borough Hall - 9.14.8
Simon Rich, Sandra Tsing Loh, Henry Alford, and Ben Greenman (L-R, tiny) mete humor writing justice in the Brooklyn Borough Hall Court House
On Sunday, The Brooklyn Book Festival offered dozens of FREE star-studded indoor and outdoor book readings and literary panels for anyone who could endure the treacherous Indian summer heat and the inane questions posed by audiences. We strolled around for a little bit in the morning before finding our way to brunch.
NOTES
--We stopped by graphic novelist Adrian Tomine's discussion on international influence and "the pleasure of finding literary voices abroad" but the meandering tenor of the conversation and terribly hot sun forced us to slink away in search of a popsicle or a Powerade or ANYTHING to moisten our scorched palate. But before we did, Tomine basically alerted us that THE NEW THING for Japanese graphic novelists is to NOT allow their work to be translated into English because our language is basically a poop-smear on the artist's original vision. He didn't use the word poop-smear.
--What's up with no food vendors at this thingy? If all these sad, young, literary people would spend less time typing manuscripts no one will read and more time grilling Mozzarepas everyone can enjoy, they would suddenly find themselves with more lucrative and delicious careers.
--Brooklyn Borough President PERKY MARTY Markowitz was pottering around the whole festival saying how great we all are. What a guy!
--Meanwhile, BEETHOVEN-HAIRED WONDERBOY Simon Rich and feuding Superbad author Ben Greenman held court in a discussion called, "Writing Funny: Humor Writers on the Not-So-Funny Craft of Writing for Laughs."
--Rich, who was slightly older than a fetus when he was hired to write for SNL, discussed being the victim of a lulzy prank played on newbie SNL staffers that involves finding a realistic prop corpse of Will Forte in a grisly position.
--For more on Simon Rich, check out a recent interview with NY Mag, his appearances last year on Gothamist and TSOYA, or The Line, co-written with Bill Hader.
--Oh, and this goes without saying, but 95% of RANDOM AUDIENCE MEMBERS who ask stuff at panels should not be asking questions, e.g. a lady whose sole query at the Writing for Laughs panel was, "You guys remember The Onion headline after 9/11, right? Right???" Er... that's not really a question!
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 4:03 PM | Comments (3)
September 11, 2008
UnMasked @ Comix (feat. Jim Gaffigan)
By: Abbi Crutchfield
Fun Fact: Jim Gaffigan suffered stage fright for seven years | Photo: iamjocco
XM Radio has a new series called "UnMasked" that tapes at Comix and is hosted by Ron and Fez. A comedian is interviewed by Ron for about an hour, and then audience members get to ask their own questions. UnMasked is a great show for comedians and comedy fans alike.
NOTES
On Competition: Gaffigan cited Todd Barry and Dave Attell as two of the people he came up with who had early success (TV spots, lots of buzz) because they were so much better than their peers. During the end of the comedy boom, you could be good, but you had to really be great to get the stage time that was rapidly disappearing.
On Stage Fright: It took Gaffigan seven years to get over stage fright, and the change wasn't overnight. He described it as recognizing when he did well, and trying to recapture that moment each time he went up. It wasn't an issue of working out the nervousness, but insisting on doing it to get the moment back.
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On Camaraderie: One of Gaffigan's early credits was that Dave Attell found him funny. The audience laughed and he explained that it was and still is one of his favorite credits. It means a lot when a comedian of influence recognizes the work of someone that few people know yet.
On Jealousy: He said everyone gets a little jealous of each other (and Ron joked, "Comedians hate their friends, Ladies and Gentlemen"), but it's usually while you're all struggling. Once you get one of your dreams / goals (i.e. a spot on a certain latenight-talk show), you don't care too much that "Dane Cook has a bajillion dollars." It evens the playing field.
On Finding His Voice: After the seven years of stage fright and 10 years of performing comfortably, he is still evolving what he talks about and how he talks about it.
Towards the end, a burly man shouted from the back: "I got a question," and Ron told him to get in line and ask at the microphone, behind all the people who were obviously waiting to ask questions. On his turn, the guy said: "I got a question. Do you remember anyone from Flannery's from back in the day?" (he points in a direction outside the building) "Gaffy! Ga-FEE! Ga-FEE!" Gaffigan smiled politely and said, "I remember you..." and the guy kept going, "GA-FEE!" until Ron shut him down by saying, "All of this is gonna f***ing be edited out." And once the guy sat down, "Okay, roll the cameras again."
• TICKET INFO: send an email complete with your full name and contact information to live@xmradio.com.
--Abbi Crutchfield is a standup comic and co-host of The Living Room. She recently wrote about standup veterans Richard Belzer and Rick Overton.
Posted by keithhuang in Show Recap at 10:00 AM | Comments (4)
August 28, 2008
The Fix Presents: FATSMILES @ Joe's Pub - 8.13.08
By: Dan Wilbur
Reggie Watts at Joe's Pub | Photo: Keith Huang
The beginning to FATSMILES had all the markings of an awkward night; people were scattered on all sides of Joe's Pub, they were quiet, and the show started right on time. But roughly five minutes in, host Craig Baldo starts to kill. A few more tables arrive, and the room, though I'm three tables away from anyone, starts to fill up. And then the laughs begin, and they don't let up for the next hour and a half.
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FATSMILES is perhaps New York's first trans-Atlantic comedy night. It's co-sponsored by U.K.-based comedy magazine, The Fix, and Olivia Wingate artists, and aims to showcase emerging-comedic talent in New York and London. Beyond that, FATSMILES is like a secret, private party thrown by comics while the club owner sleeps. The success of the most recent show in New York was due primarily to the comedians, who were all clearly elated to be playing a swanky piano bar.
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The stand-up, however, wasn't the easy-listening elevator music one might expect upon entering a beautiful lounge like Joe's Pub. In fact, the hopeful performance by Jacqueline Novak, whose toes hung over the edge of the stage while she commented on the desperations of dating, was more hilarious flirtation than practiced routine: "I don't want to wear my heart out on my thong, but..." Meanwhile, Todd Levin talked openly about his girlfriend, sighing into a half-grumble: "I'm gonna lose her soon." And Jay Larson, suddenly confronted by an audience member's laughter, shot back: "What do you like?"
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The comedians' loose interaction mixed with their tested material made the room comfortable and expectant. And then Reggie Watts, winner of the 2006 Andy Kaufman Award, closed the night in signature style -- with fake rap songs featuring only graphic-sexual words and beat boxing. However loose or bizarre a room feels at a late night show, there's no way to prepare an audience for the force of Watts, especially if they've never seen him perform. In fact, at one point Watts sounded like he was answering questions on NPR as an inarticulate Cleveland rapper before launching into a made-up, though heartfelt, speech about the service work that the 46 owners of Joe's Pub were doing around the city.
• FATSMILES is still nailing down its schedule, but you can keep tabs on the Myspace page. Elsewhere, Fix Magazine is currently closed for refurbishment.
Posted by keithhuang in Show Recap at 10:00 AM | Comments (3)
August 18, 2008
Rick Overton @ Ha! Comedy Club - 7.25.8
By: Abbi Crutchfield
Rick Overton at Ha! Comedy Club | Photo: Abbi Crutchfield
Listening to a comedy album on vinyl brings visions of hazy smoke and elbow patches. Flash forward to the CD-age and the images change; patrons can't smoke, and I don't own a tweed blazer. But for Rick Overton, who recently recorded his album at Ha! Comedy Club, the sound of continuous, raucous laughter is the same. A comedy veteran whose resume includes writing for Dennis Miller Live, Overton may look familiar to you. His acting credits range from Willow to Groundhog Day and most recently Steven Soderbergh's The Informant. In fact, it was his remarkable acting skills that dominated during his set.
Continue reading "Rick Overton @ Ha! Comedy Club - 7.25.8
By: Abbi Crutchfield"
Posted by keithhuang in Show Recap at 10:30 AM | Comments (4)
August 14, 2008
Soce Is The Gayest Rapper Ever
Soce the Elemental Wizard disses his rap battle opponent by calling him "straight" | Photo via Soce
We here at The Apiary try to give propers whenever and wherever they're due. So when Super Commenter and contributing editor, Andrew "Soce" Singer recently told us he'd won "The Gayest Rapper Show Ever" on Sirius Satellite Radio's Shade 45 show, we dropped everything we were doing to deliver the news.
We know several facts about Soce (pronounced SEW-say): He is gay, he reads The Apiary, he enjoys video games and perhaps most importantly, he unites people (watch his sublime BAAB Collabo). But what we didn't know for a fact is that Soce is a microphone assassin. To clinch the Gayest Rapper Ever title, Soce eviscerated fellow gay lyricist and gravelly voiced MC, Kurt Black, with this line: "Man, you straight. I hate a fake homo. Claiming men for the promo. You ain't touched a dick except when you're solo." You can listen to Soce's killer "pussy lyrics" here.
After a majority of listeners voted in Soce's favor, the hip-hop wizard politely curtsied to Black, who was behaving like a sore loser. Though Soce was quick to inform the radio crew that he had been trained in the Suzuki Method: "We always take a bow." Yeah, that's Soce -- classy to the end.
RELATED
Soce's Best Week Ever
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August 11, 2008
Del Close Marathon: The Aftermath
Congratulations. You made it.
After three straight days of improv at the 10th Annual Del Close Marathon -- which took place over the weekend at the UCBT, Hudson Guild Theatre, Urban Stages, and the Fashion Institute of Technology -- comedy nerds and novices alike can attest to its being an event that will not soon be forgotten (unless, of course, you were trashed).
The DCM staff were -- as always -- constantly on their feet, cleaning up the mess and keeping the relative chaos to a dull roar for everyone in attendance.
What I, personally, managed to take away from this year's festivities was the following:
--Ian Roberts is an awesome dad
--Bobby Moynihan knows how to keep an audience on his side
--Brooke Shields is not-so-secretly a comedy nerd
--Brett Gelman's Billy Crystal impression can subconsciously take over at any moment
--Doug Benson says if you don't enjoy being filmed while packing and unpacking your shit, don't be on a reality show
--Jason Woliner of Human Giant made this child actor say "Grandpa!" 64 times
--Jackie Clarke can defecate differently than the rest of us
--Rob Huebel once went home with a rich gentleman
--Jack McBrayer can "sing!"
And now a round-up of DCM-related material floating up online:
Improvoker at the DCM Press Conference
Jane Borden and Amy Plitt's extensive coverage: Day 1, Day 1.5, Day 2, Day 2.5
HaroldCast livebloggage: Friday, Saturday, and Sunday
Rachel Sklar's recap at The Huffington Post
Eliza Skinner did double-duty with both I Eat Pandas and Baby Wants Candy
Del Close's album How To Speak Hip even found some coverage
If you have posts or videos, please send my way!
Posted by Eliot in Show Recap at 2:00 PM | Comments (1)
August 1, 2008
Suit Yourself @ The Magnet Theater - 7.29.8
By: Lucas Klauss
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Suit Yourself is a sketch-comedy show written and performed by Matt Evans and Frank Campanella, who are also members of The Bordeaux Twins and improv team 4Track, which was named Time Out New York's Best New Improv Show for 2007. Suit Yourself was followed by Picture Day, a sketch show written and performed by Sarah Clark, Meghan O'Neill and Jen Sanders.
NOTES
--Lest there be any confusion: Frank Campanella is assuredly NOT deceased character actor Frank Campanella, but rather, the alive and seemingly healthy comedic actor Frank Campanella.
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--Matt Evans also appears to be a vigorous young man. And with a doctor sketch that leads both Frank and Matt to on-stage undies-wearing, audience members may feel free to ogle as they please.
--As funny as randomness and wacky premises can be on stage, restraint is often more thrilling to watch. These dudes have a sharp anti-ham sensibility, perhaps best embodied in a sketch in which Evans plays a doctor who stares lustfully at his patient who has been asked to disrobe.
--That said, these guys aren't afraid to get silly from time to time. A running blackout gag follows Campanella as Frank Maloney, a homicide detective who's seen some pretty awful stuff -- and who also endured an operation to replace his larynx with a baby's larynx.
--In a quietly absurdist sketch, both men are auditioning for a role that, at first, requires them to really invest emotion in the line, "Get away from the dinosaur. It's actually a robot." As the two try their best, the disembodied voice of the casting agent radically changes the line from ridiculous to even more ridiculous to really, really long and ridiculously ridiculous.
--This show does not seem to be slated for upcoming performances just yet, but catch Frank, Matt, George Basil and Christian Capozzoli at Magnet Theater on Saturday nights at 10:30PM.
Posted by keithhuang in Show Recap at 12:00 PM | Comments (0)
July 25, 2008
Richard Belzer @ Comix - 7.19.8
By: Abbi Crutchfield
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To many of today's younger comics, Richard Belzer is like Bigfoot -- we've heard of him, but our knowledge ends there. Fortunately, Richard Belzer has little interest in appealing to today's younger comics -- he doesn't have to. He's been in the business for 37 years, and as I learned at Comix last Saturday, he's less concerned with coming across as cool or being appreciated as a legend, and more concerned with having a good time.
Case in point, Belzer strutted onto the Comix stage to "Start Me Up" by the Rolling Stones, and then instantly went into spastic marionette movements, kind of like what a 10-year-old might do to crack up his parents' dinner-party guests. But before you can say trying too hard, Belzer regained his composure and launched into crowd work, transforming a room of 200 people into an intimate gathering.
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What does a show with "comedy, music and the unexpected" deliver? Just that. Precise impersonations accompanied by a four-piece band (The Belzonics), dishing on life in France, and a surprise appearance by Paul Shaffer; these were just a few of the tricks up Belzer's sleeve. The rest was a medley of improvisations to behold. For example, when the mic stand broke unexpectedly, Belzer fired back with his best Nat King Cole: "Unprofessional ... that's what I am." When an audience member fibbed answers to the comic's questions, Belzer instantly called it out. And when that audience member turned out to be the brother of a famous producer, Belzer let the producer have it, too, just for being related.
He is a comedian in complete control of his performance, and his polish impressed the crowd, including fellow comedy heavyweight Robert Klein, Oz creator Tom Fontana and performance artist Laurie Anderson.
There were moments I could have done without, such as his denouncing racism before launching into a racist joke, personifying a Jewish DJ in Brooklyn during an unintelligible song, and re-hashing the decades-old Hulk Hogan drama. But the show flowed so smoothly, we were all surprised to hear he had gone 10 minutes over. He was enjoying the moment so much he had lost track of time. Then again, mythical creatures do not typically wear watches.
--Abbi Crutchfield is a standup comic and co-host of The Living Room.
Posted by keithhuang in Show Recap at 12:00 PM | Comments (3)
June 27, 2008
Sara Schaefer's One Sara Show @ Ars Nova - 6.17.8
Sara Schaefer premiered her One Sara Show at Ars Nova as part of its Tragedy Tomorrow venture, an ongoing series of new works encouraging creative risk-taking by showcasing a wide-ranging spectrum of emerging comedic talent.
NOTES
--Sara Schaefer delivered the most artistically mature and developed performance we've ever seen of her. It might have had something to do with the production elements or the cool pirate scenery (thanks to the Jollyship The Whiz-Bang residency) or the packed and supportive audience, but there was a confidence and presence in this outing that we haven't seen from Schaefer before. It was as if she transcended herself.
--The gist of the story is A DICKENSIAN REDEMPTION SAGA of self-absorption broken up by humorous home videos and ephemera of Sara in her formative years. One such video cruelly depicts Minnie Mouse on a hug rampage at Disney World, doling out doting embraces to everyone except an awkward, star-struck Schaefer. The video was appropriately freezed at the exact moment that disappointment and angst wash over her face.
--Though it's billed as a one-Sara show, it is not a one-person show. She's backed by the genteel and chatty back-up band, Meowskers, who serve as both supporting actors and a bounce wall to Schaefer's compulsive navel gazing. We like seeing performances that show off the time spent getting it to its current incarnation and Meowskers did that. Dan McCoy let us know, "She was also backed by a couple of actors. My own contribution was a glorified cameo, but you should take a moment to mention the awesome Tamara Malaga who played Sara's Honduran orphan pen-pal Dinora, who contributed one of the major through-lines of the show."
--When asked about the show's progression and the band, Sara tells The Apiary, "I've been developing the show for a year, I started writing it last August. Meowskers and I have been 2 ships passing in the night for a while. Jeff, the drummer, was also by chance my tech guy at Union Hall for the workshop of the show. When The Lisps (the original band that performed w/me in it) couldn't do the show at Ars Nova, Meowskers came up. No offense to The Lisps at all--but Meowskers, it turns out, are totally and completely on my wave length, and brought the show to a whole new level."
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 4:40 PM | Comments (3)
June 2, 2008
Pangea 3000 @ The UCBT - 5.29.8
Pangea 3000 as "The Five Eggheads" - Seth Reiss, Sam Kemmis, Dan Klein, Arthur Meyer, and Andrew Cleary
Pangea 3000 split a bill with Lennon Parham's stunning one-person show, She Tried to Be Normal. While Lennon spends her summer in Los Angeles, the Pangea boys hold down the fort with a handful of upcoming shows at The UCBT.
NOTES
--Pangea 3000 is an interesting group: they're scrappy, stupid for stupid's sake, and they're willing to confidently run a gag from "that's fun" to "umm... what time is it?" back to "this is more pleasing than before." Is there a word for that? (INFINITY HAHA-HELIX? ELTON JOHN'S "CIRCLE OF LAUGH?") Troupe member Andrew Cleary stands out with his quirky physicality and his "Frank Zappa's the new manager of TekServe" look.
--In a scene that nearly sent us down a situationist spiral, a doctor tells a couple their child is dying. He says if they need him, "I'll be over here eating a chicken parm." So while the grief racked parents go off-stage to mourn with their child, the doctor sits center and, for 3 minutes or so, silently eats an entire chicken sandwich and a Diet Coke. The scene ends with the couple returning and both parties asking each other how their moments were.
--Not all their stuff reminded us that somewhere, someone is eating a sandwich while we're struggling with the cold realities of existence. If you find gaseous noises TOTALLY FARTRAGEOUS, their closer--a scene depicting the final rounds of a butt-sound spelling bee--is the funniest sketch we've seen in a while. Check plus!
--Pangea 3000 shares a slot at SketchFest next week with Rue Brutalia. See you there?
Going out with a toot
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 1:49 PM | Comments (3)
May 28, 2008
Triple Play @ The UCBT - 5.27.8
Abbi Jacobson, Emily Tarver, and Sarah Claspell
A 600-level class of improvisers play in groups of three at The UCBT in Triple Play.
NOTES
--We slinked by the densely populated Harold Night earlier in the evening and was TEASED INTO SUBMISSION by the Triple Play performers who hopped on stage between harold sets to encourage everyone to mill around afterwards for mucho monoscene mayhem.
--While researching the performers, we discovered that many of these people love spending leisure time in indie improv outfits such as Fat Penguin, Sherpa, and Queefer Sutherland.
--The class' instructor Charlie Todd was SPOTTED in a shadowy corner applying a writing utensil to a pad of paper. He appeared to be taking notes.
Zach Linder, Spike Friedman, and Dave Bluvband
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 2:07 AM | Comments (2)
May 6, 2008
The Cody Rivers Show @ The UCBT - 5.5.8
Perennial favorite from the Pacific Northwest, The Cody Rivers Show, is at The UCBT this week with Stick to Glue, a collection of some of their most popular sketches and performance art rewritten into a new set.
NOTES
--In this effort, the Cody Rivers duo Andrew Connor and Mike Mathieu perform with interrobangs painted on their faces. If the punctuation is to be taken as a reflection of the viewer's deconstructed thoughts throughout the show, "What the?!", then it's simple and effective.
--One thing we've always liked about them is how the audience gets cast as unintentional participants in their twisted worlds. Much like Celeste Pizza for One, Cody Rivers' "Theatre for One" is equally as weird looking and uncomfortable when it's pressed up against your face.
--They perform again this Wednesday at UCBT, so if you missed it, THERE'S STILL TIME. The boys are actually on a long summer tour to various fringe festivals and comedy theatres right now. The East Coast is the first leg.
--We had a chance last week to ask Andrew Connor via email what motivates them and how they approach the writing process. He responded:
The primary thing that guides our creative process is a desire to make material that is unlike anything that we have seen before or done before. That is a challenge that sometimes feels like it is getting perpetually more difficult, since we are always doing and seeing more (although of course, sometimes it seems effortless...sometimes...).It occurred to me recently that I don't think we are usually writing comedy. Our approach to creating is fundamentally about cultivating ideas that are unusual and interesting and weird, and then sprinkling in a little dash of funny to justify calling it a comedy show.
Some recent collaborations with other folks have really highlighted that, where Mike and I might say something like: "What about something with our arms waving around like this?" And these joke-writing comedians are like: "What the hell are you talking about? What is funny about that?" Which is a good question, for which we often don't have an answer. And sometimes there's nothing funny about it. But sometimes it is piercingly hilarious for reasons no one understands.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 1:44 PM | Comments (0)
March 18, 2008
Gallagher @ The Blender Theater - 3.14.8
Will plastic outerwear be enough to save us from Gallagher?
NOTES
--We think our disappointment with Gallagher's performance on Friday stems from our misunderstanding on what to expect. We thought the set up was: "An icon who's fallen off the radar returns for a new shot at cultural relevance." That's every show on VH1; you can't resist that! The problem was that that wasn't the true lead in to the show. Rather, it was simply: "An icon who's fallen off the radar returns." Period. We don't think he's trying to be popular or relevant again.
--His jokes, which have an old coot-like anticharm to them, consist mainly of handicap harrassing, racebaiting, queerbashing pomp. He proudly talks about how GLAAD has been on his case and that he's not allowed on TV because he speaks too much truth. When he's not telling jokes or smashing stuff, he spits root beer on the crowd, ruins people's clothing without warning, interrupts during his openers' sets, and degrades the gimps who come on stage. One hammer smashing volunteer who was covered with all sorts of shit (mostly mayo), incisively inquired, "How am I going to get a cab home like this?" You think Gallagher cares?
--There's certainly something sexually humiliating about the whole affair. We doubt everyone in the assembled crowd is into watersports, but we imagine 85 percent of the people in the front rows are.
--Speaking of the front row, a distraught couple sitting there was heckled out of the venue by Gallagher. We weren't close enough to see their alleged disruptiveness, but at least 15 minutes of the show was dedicated to the following chain of events: Gallagher degrading the couple > them trying to apologize > Gallagher degrading them again when they weren't doing anything > Gallagher causing a big scene until they left > them standing near the exit in disbelief reassuring each other what a jerk Gallagher is > the boyfriend marching towards the stage to say, "Hey Asshole, you made my girlfriend cry!" > the couple being escorted out by security.
--But this was all just indicative of the larger chaos. Anyone could simply walk up to the stage and stick a buck knife into it, like when Gallagher asked the crowd for something to cut apples with. One attendee claims to be suffering from Post-Traumatic-Gallagher-Disorder.
--The seats, the audience, the walls, the scrim, and the entirety of the orchestra section of the Blender Theater was draped in Hefty bags and plastic. Not very eco-friendly for someone who so passionately portrayed Uncle Earth!
The protective garbage bag of the girl Gallagher made cry finds its way to a bigger garbage bag all too soon.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:45 AM | Comments (2)
March 10, 2008
Out of Africa My Mind @ The UCBT - 3.6.8
By: Keith Huang
Few things are quite so painful as unrequited love, and Nick Zimmerman knows it all too well in his one-man memoir show, Out of Africa My Mind.
It's the weekend at the University of Chicago, and Zimmerman is pacing about his freshman dorm room, hoping that someone--anyone--will come to his theme party based on the 1985 blockbuster movie starring Meryl Streep and Robert Redford, Out of Africa. The audience quickly learns that Zimmerman, like all party hosts, threw the soiree largely to be near his One True Crush, Will Green, a guy whom Zimmerman had shared a touching moment with weeks earlier.
From there, we find that Zimmerman's love interest in Will escalates from crush to nearly life-altering obsession. Zimmerman assures me, "The show's about me and making fun of me--not making fun of Will." He adds, "We're actually friends now."
That anyone would throw a dorm party where guests are expected to recite lines karaoke-style from Out of Africa is pretty lame; that anyone would throw a dorm party and not serve alcohol is unthinkable. But it's this cluelessness that makes Zimmerman's show fun to watch.
Zimmerman is a generous performer who avoids the cheap laugh. As a result, the laughs find their way to him, mostly because his premises are so simple. Here is a man who creates his own trainwreck of an evening, and here he is years later guiding us through the debris.
Like most black-box shows, the transitions involve colored light. During which, Zimmerman creates a humorous tableau, shaded in crimson, reciting Streep's breathy voice with lines from the movie like: "I had a farm in Africa at the foot of the Ngong Hills." Maybe it's just his pronunciation of "Ngong Hills" that's funny. Or maybe it's his subsequent explanation of how he mimics Streep's Danish accent: "You really have to go for the umlaut."
Seated beneath an Out of Africa poster, Zimmerman avoids breaking the fourth wall by addressing the only guest at the party, a disposable engineering student named "Ralph" who comprises several University of Chicago classmates, including "a guy who lived in a single room with nothing but buckets of metal parts." The scenes are all garnished appropriately--he bundles himself in a red, puffy jacket to brave the notorious South Side wind, he hoists a Ziploc bag filled with whole-wheat Fig Newtons and he is palpably excited as he preps himself at the computer before opening an email from Will.
As a barometer of any good show, the writing includes a few turns that render real sympathy from the audience: "At the end of spring quarter I dropped out of school, moved home with my parents, and waited for Will to come... or for me to die."
We first spotted Zimmerman as an improv neophyte in the Project Improviser web series, in which he finished in the final three. Since then, he has peformed at the UCB and also The Magnet, where he improvises with "Commando." Directed by John Flynn, Out of Africa My Mind can be seen Thursday, March 27, at the UCB with The Lance & Ray Show.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 4:12 PM | Comments (3)
February 28, 2008
Invite Them Up Ends Historic Run
Photo: mways
Eugene Mirman and Bobby Tisdale's iconic (now LEGENDARY) weekly show and party, Invite Them Up, concluded its nearly 6-year run at Rififi last night. A teeming mass of fans, comedians, and friends of the show squeezed into every available square inch of the venue to take part.
From the ITU site:
After this week, Invite Them Up is going on indefinite hiatus. We'll do shows again, though not weekly and not for a little while. We'll post any updates on this website so keep refreshing until something new happens... We already miss you!
RELATED
Invite Them Up Says Goodbye - Day 1 - 2.25.08
Invite Them Up Says Goodbye - Day 2 - 2.26.08
Invite Them Up Final Shows - The Definitive Photo Set by Marianne Ways
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:21 AM | Comments (2)
January 29, 2008
The 2007 ECNY Awards @ Comix - 1.28.8
Danny Leary, Katina Corrao, Ann Carr, and Brooke Van Poppelen
The city's brightest comics, performers, and comedy industry amassed last night at Comix for the 2007 ECNY Awards. From the red carpet pre-show, to the phenomenal presenters, the sublime musical acts (Sublime didn't play, sadly), and the wee-hours afterparty: we were floored by how nicely it all came together. The awards were really just an excuse to put on a fun, overblown party; we hope everyone had a good time. Sixteen trophies were taken home.
THE ECNY AWARDS NOMINEE VIDEO
THE WINNERS
Best Director: Kurt Braunohler
Best Host: Eugene Mirman and Michael Showalter (Tearing the Veil of Maya @ Union Hall)
Best Improv Group: I Eat Pandas
Best One Person Show: Nick Kroll (Fabrice Fabrice)
Best Short Comedic Film: Elephant Larry's Minesweeper
Best Technician: Pat Baer
Best Variety Show: The Greg Johnson & Larry Murphy Show
Outstanding Achievement In Flyer Design: Matthew C. Johnson & Keith Huang (The Apple Sisters)
Best Website: News or Commentary: The Apiary
Best Website: Original Comedic Content: The Onion News Network
Lifetime Achievement Award: Eddie Brill
Emerging Comic Award: Joe Mande
Best Sketch Group: Harvard Sailing Team
Best Musical Comedy Act: The Apple Sisters
Best Female Stand Up: Kristen Schaal
Best Male Stand Up: John Mulaney
BONUS FACTS
--The ECNY Girl, Katherine Bryant, wore a dress lended to us by Zac Posen.
--All winners and nominees received giftbags. What was stuffed in those bagholes? Winners received a bottle of The Macallan, The Ten on DVD, a full season of Strangers with Candy on DVD, a $25 gift certificate to L'Asso, a book by Scott Bateman, an EcoBag, The Onion refrigerator magnet kits, Slap energy drinks, a shocking Whitest Kids U' Know Calendar/Mad Magazine promo, an EMusic promo, a book by Scott Bateman, NYC condoms, genital lube packets, and comp cards to Magnet, The PIT, and Comix.
--The awards were determined by a 50/50 combination of the popular/online vote and an industry committee vote (a wide assortment of 45 industry veterans, theater directors, show bookers, writers, and comedy superfans). We added the two percentages together and whoever had the highest, won a trophy. There were no ties, no disputes, and the voting was all tabulated by our nonpartisan web designer Heather, who has no idea who any of you people are. You're all just names in a database to her. Here are a couple stats from the vote tallies.
5153: The number of online voters
2642: Most number of popular votes in a single category (Best Short Comedic Film)
37.7%: Highest percentage achieved in the popular vote - I Eat Pandas for Best Improv Group
59.4%: Highest percentage achieved in the industry vote - Kristen Schaal for Best Female Stand Up
--Jon Friedman did a great job! So did Chris O'Connor, the official award accepter for winners who could not be in attendance (Nick Kroll & Pat Baer).
Kurt Braunohler's Native American friend accepts the award for Best Director | Photo: Keith Huang
I Eat Pandas | Photo: Keith Huang
ECNY Girl, Katherine Bryant | Photo: Keith Huang
Adira Amram | Photo: Keith Huang
Larry Murphy & Greg Johnson | Photo: Keith Huang
Reggie Watts makes people put their arms in the air, like they just don't care | Photo: Keith Huang
The Apple Sisters | Photo: Keith Huang
People with fake moustaches love going to awards shows! | Photo: Kawshka
John Mulaney | Photo: Keith Huang
RELATED
The Official ECNY photo spread by Keith Huang
More photos from Rachel Kramer Bussel
Insider EXCLUSIVES of The Fake Moustache Table
An animated gif of a moment between Andrew WK & Joe Mande
A recap of the night's proceedings
Scott Bateman's nominee intros COLLECTED
Time Out NY did double duty, stopping by the ECNYs after their own show
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 12:32 PM | Comments (6)
January 8, 2008
An Evening With the Writers and Performers from Saturday Night Live @ Comix - 1.7.8
By: Keith Huang
According to StrikeBeards.com, "Strike beards are all the rave these days." Here at The Apiary, we couldn't agree more.; And if history will remember anything about 2008--it will be strike beards. On Monday night, Apiary fave Jason Sudeikis brought his hirsute protest to the Comix stage as he hosted "An Evening with the Writers and Performers from Saturday Night Live." The show was a benefit to raise money for the Writer's Guild of America East.
NOTES
--SNL writer Colin "Hamburger" Jost discussed the pending death knell of the Chicken Soup for the Soul franchise. Case in point: "Chicken Soup for the Horse Lover's Soul II: Tales of Passion, Achievement and Devotion," which is a real book. Also, Jost earned the nickname "Hamburger" because he fell asleep on a hamburger during an SNL after-party, according to Sudeikis. However, Jost was the only other performer to rock a strike beard.
--Writer Bryan Tucker showcased his fonts. He also used the word "serif," and displayed "Shitstorm," one of his many awesome fonts. You might remember Tucker from this incredible video.
--Leo Allen did some standup before his longtime writing-partner-in-crime Eric Slovin arrived to showcase their new video, "The Photo Shoot," featuring UCB and Magnet improv master Jason Mantzoukas.
--Janeane Garofalo dropped in, readjusted the mic stand and then owned the crowd from the word go. According to Garofalo, she's into beading these days, due to her participation in a federal grand jury. She also said she was so fed up with the bland reading of much of the phonetapping transcripts that she volunteered to help read them aloud. Apiary sibling, The Bastion recently best summed up a live viewing of Garofolo: "She had a notebook and tattoos and looked for all the world like the cool alt-comedy kid she remains, which stands to reason when you consider that she created that mold."
--Jason Sudeikis pointed out another bearded man in the audience, whom he thought looked a lot like Kenny "Mr. Soundtrack" Loggins. "And that was in the '80s," Sudeikis said. "He's probably Dr. Soundtrack by now." Following some great crowd work, Sudeikis would later confirm that Kenny Loggins turned 60 on Jan. 7, 2008.
--Headliner Darrell Hammond sincerely discussed the unexpected popularity of his impersonation of Sean Connery on Jeopardy, and how it befuddles him that that character will probably serve as his legacy. Hammond brought out the crowd pleasers: Tony Soprano, Schwarzenegger (who, he says, speaks in "noun chunks"), Clinton and this Old School Brooklyn Guy voice that handily stole his set.
--And then there was this nameless, faceless female Random Audience Member, whom Sudeikis dubbed "The French Hamburglar." Seated in the front, The French Hamburglar tried to snap on Leo Allen, stating in so few words, that Allen was merely a roadblock in the way of viewing Andy Samberg (who, incidentally, was unable to perform at the show). Allen had previously razzed her about checking her cellphone messages in the middle of his set: "What happened to your New Year's resolution?" he asked. Subsequently, both Garofalo and Hammond would bust on The French Hamburglar, as well. "You're looking at me like you're watching the Weather Channel," Hammond told her.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:30 AM | Comments (4)
January 7, 2008
The Lance & Ray Show @ The UCBT - 1.3.7
Lance Rubin and Ray Munoz wrote and star in The Lance & Ray Show, a quick-footed friend-redemption romp that's ongoing at The UCB Theatre.
NOTES
--We wouldn't recommend this move for every sketch group, but their opening scene and crackerjack backdrop seems designed to disorient the audience and set low expectations. As the show keeps trucking, Lance and Ray get more and more likeable. By the time it ends, you're in a much better mood than when it started.
--Lance has a little bit of a Rob Huebel vibe going on. We didn't know such a thing existed in people who are not Rob Huebel until we saw it in him.
--The best laugh materializes out of nowhere when Lance and Ray get into character and start discussing a recent trip to Sea World. It went over like a cool improv moment, in that, the audience was partly chuckling at what appeared to be the actors' own discovery of the scene. It was an unexpectedly flashy display of L&R's chemistry and commitment.
--The Lance and Ray Show is paired again with Jen & Angie on January 24th, a show that droolie mid-American grocery shoppers all know about thanks to Us Weekly. L&R are also appearing in the UCBT's upcoming Winter Showcase.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 4:31 PM | Comments (0)
December 28, 2007
The Mervin Douglas Show @ The UCBT - 12.20.7
The Mervin Douglas Show as described by the blurb: "Your favorite talk show comes to the UCBT, just in time for Christmas! With special guest host Horatio Sanz."
NOTES
--Something you don't see often at the UCB: a cue cards guy. What's odd is that it seemed like the cue cards were more of a hindrance to the flow than a help. The best moments came out of improvisation as the actors settled into their characters.
--After a slightly bumpy top half of the show, Miriam Tolan's guest appearance as a neurotic arts and crafts lady with increasingly ridiculous family problems won the crowd back. Our stomach LITERALLY needs to be restapled (from laughing, not from obesity surgery complications) every time we see Miriam perform.
--Horatio finished out the show with his brilliant Aaron Neville impression. Decorated with face tatts and a muscle suit, Sanz emulated Neville's manchild warble and warmly cooed the 12 Days of Christmas, substituting turtle doves with items Aaron Neville would want, such as human growth hormone, leather wristbands, and a 5 pound tub of cocoa butter.
--We know the show was probably just Horatio's annual Christmas spectacular with a different bow on it, but it smelled like it could also be some kind of prototype vehicle for icon Dennis Haskins (aka Mr. Belding, aka Mervin Douglas) to reclaim his rightful throne. There were graphics and videos and bits made involving Haskins, but he never physically appeared on stage. His absence was explained by saying that Horatio was "filling in" for Mervin Douglas. Throughout the performance, a fictional backstory about The Mervin Douglas Show was presented, including an account about how Mervin was one of the first talk show hosts to begin healing the nation after 9/11... as seen with this video below.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 12:42 PM | Comments (2)
December 21, 2007
Comic Book Club: 1-Year Anniversary @ The PIT - 12.18.7
Bill Hader, Seth Meyers, Matt Fraction, Brian Michael Bendis, Ed Brubaker
The Comic Book Club celebrated its 1-year anniversary at The PIT with a SOLD OUT show featuring comic book fans Bill Hader & Seth Meyers and three of the biggest writers at Marvel Comics, Matt Fraction (Iron Fist, Punisher War Journal), Brian Michael Bendis (New Avengers, Ultimate Spiderman), and Ed Brubaker (Uncanny X-Men, Captain America, Criminal).
NOTES
--The writers were in town for a semi-annual event called the Marvel Creative Summit, a continental congress for every writer and editor at Marvel to brainstorm and map out storylines for the upcoming year.
--When asked to reveal some details from the summit the audience guffawed when Bendis sarcastically said, "Alpha Flight is the new X-Men." Seth Meyers sat visibly befuddled through a couple nerdcore wisecracks such as this before saying, "I'm counting how many jokes will only get a laugh from this crowd."
--Bill Hader's impression of a dying Tauntaun was perhaps one of those jokes. We found it funny though.
--Seth and Bill revealed that when Natalie Portman was a guest on SNL, she stunned the writers' room during a read-through when she mispronounced the word Dagobah.
--According to the THE NEW YORK TIMES PROFILE ON THE COMIC BOOK CLUB, "[LePage, Tyler, and Zalben] have parlayed the show into a gig for PulpSecret.com, a Web site devoted, of course, to comics. Their video version of 'The Stack' offers three in-depth reviews of comics and a seven-minute 'speed round' packed with topics. On YouTube, one clip of the show received more than 15,000 views. Mr. Zalben recalled being in line to see 'Beowulf' when he met a man who said, 'Thank you for everything you do.'"
--RELATED: More pics HERE. PREVIOUSLY: Comic Book Club: Featuring Joe Quesada
Pete LePage, Alex Zalben, Justin Tyler
Kimmy Gatewood sings The Comic Book Club theme song.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 2:09 PM | Comments (2)
November 16, 2007
Tim Minchin @ Ars Nova - 11.12.7
After clinching the Best Alternative Comedian award at the Aspen Comedy Festival earlier this year, celebrated Australian comedic pianist Tim Minchin finally returned to the US to perform a small string of shows to the packed crowds at Ars Nova. This was his first night.
NOTES
--Minchin is already a superstar in the UK and Australia, two markets which when we entered the word "comedy" in Google Trends a few weeks ago, were suprised to learn both ranked higher than the US in search volume. Significant? We think so. That sort of got us thinking that the US is probably actually the 3rd stop for international comedy stars ready to go global. Tim played to about a hundred here when he's usually in front of thousands at the Royal Albert Hall in London and The Sydney Opera House. He's every bit as sensational as the buzz suggested, but if NYC is supposed to be defining culture and the center of the universe and stuff, we're a little bit late to the Tim Minchin party.
--The guy is a total rock star, like Ben Folds with a different set of hangups. He fingered the ivories so fiendishly, he even broke a key!
--We were surprised at how much stand up there was in his show. We expected one song after another coupled with some witty banter as with Flight of the Conchords, but Tim wanders away from the piano and does long bits too. It's closer to a cabaret act.
--He made several allusions throughout the evening to his worry about not being taken seriously or thought of as deep enough, as seen here in the video below. It's no mistake that for an encore he chose a rather serious song that's littered with tender Hedwig-esque examinations on self-acceptance and our relationship to the vastness of the world around us. It does exactly what it's supposed to, making certain everyone walks away from the show knowing Minchin is brilliant.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 2:02 PM | Comments (0)
November 9, 2007
Kasper Hauser's SkyMaul @ Ars Nova - 11.8.7
San Francisco sketch icons Kasper Hauser performed the stage show to SkyMaul, their book which spoofs the zany homophoned in-flight shopping catalogue. It was part of Ars Nova's Thursdays at Ten series, a weekly slot dedicated to booking progressive and compelling voices in music and comedy.
NOTES
--PREMISE: A PowerPoint presentation at the top of the show reveals profits sinking and shareholder confidence crumbling at the SkyMaul Corporation. CEO Jerry Ponda steps down and four new candidates vie for his position with company-preserver invention pitches like the "Hummingbird Poisoner" and the "Baby Stroller Lawn Mower." Sketches and videos are interspersed between the stumping.
--We like that each of the people in Kasper Hauser incidentally look like specific rock stars. The Reichmuth twins are ditto machine duplicates of Flea, Dan Klein is a ringer for Wayne Coyne, and if you squint a little bit, you'll swear Rob Baedecker is really Rocker Jon Bon Jovi.
--SPOTTED: The group draws some serious fans. The crowd was spackled with POWERFUL COMEDY AND LITERARY CELEBRITIES like John Hodgman, Eric Slovin, Leo Allen, Sarah Vowell, & Assorted Daily Show Staffers. Did a secret meeting for THE CHURCH OF 826 take place later that night in the shadows?
--LOOKING BACK: An early Apiary interview with Kasper Hauser and a recent profile.
--Kasper Hauser jump kicks The Longest Sketch Show Ever TONIGHT at The UCBT. If you can't wait that long, here's one of the videos they showed. This will quench your thirst (for ballginas).
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 2:30 PM | Comments (0)
The Upright Citizens Brigade @ The Paley Center for Media - 11.8.7
The Paley Center for Media hosted Amy Poehler, Matt Besser, and Ian Roberts for an evening of review and reflection on The Upright Citizens Brigade. The panel was moderated by Onion head writer, Todd Hanson.
NOTES
--Filling in for Matt Walsh in the role of Bashful-at-Panels-Matt Walsh was Improv Everywhere's Agent Wimpy.
--"We don't like comedy that's absurd for absurd's sake," said Ian Roberts. He tossed out key concepts like HEIGHTENING THE GAME and EXPLORING THE REALISM when describing the things that improvisers and sketch writers should adhere to.
--In the UCB's formative years in Chicago (early 90's), they said they often had their street theatre pranks broken up by police such as with Virtual Reality, an audience participation event in which the crowd was given a scenario and encouraged to pretend it's real. On one particular night, the scene was "March on City Hall" and the audience was issued torches and fake guns and lead out into the streets in angry mob fashion. The fuzz quickly appeared to bust up the crowd and hauled away a defiant Horatio Sanz who didn't break character even as he was being stuffed into a police cruiser.
--The panel was mostly just a pleasant innertube ride down Clips River until Matt Besser made A BTW BOMBSHELL ANNOUNCEMENT in the final 30 seconds of the event. He said people always ask him if he wants to do movies or TV shows and he tells these people what he actually wants is his own network, so they could do things their way. He explained that with recent advances in Internet technologies, having your own network is now totally possible. Coming soon: www.UCBcomedy.com
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:12 AM | Comments (1)
November 6, 2007
Jim Jeffries @ The UCBT - 11.5.7
NOTES
--We got a tip late last week that UK-based Jim Jeffries was a must-see. An international sensation already, Jeffries did his first NYC set ever at the UCBT last night. Despite a moderate turnout, MOVERS AND TUPAC SHAKERS in the talent development community must've gotten tipped off about his arrival too because there was a solid showing of industry people milling around, including someone from Comedy Central taping a clean 30-minutes to presumably distribute to producers at the network.
--After the somewhat clean portion of the show, Jeffries tore into the real meat of his act, a badass blend of filth and charm. It seems "TMI" is not part of the vocab in Australia or wherever Jeffries comes from. His comedy is spun from his queasy real-life experiences like getting molested by a scoutmaster, discovering he had penile cancer while masturbating, being brutally robbed with a machete, and doing blow in the bathroom of a gay bar in South Africa. These aren't really jokes you can slip in at Thanksgiving dinner this year.
--Though his appeal skews towards the cringe humor set, it's refreshing to see an act that's so gritty that doesn't come off like fanciful stage posturing.
--One RANDOM AUDIENCE MEMBER was laughing a little too hard at some of Jim's jokes about degrading women. His date, unsurprisingly, wasn't laughing as much.
--Here's a sweet profile on Jim written for last summer's Edinburgh Fringe Fest which details a BOAST-OFF between Jeffries' mom and Tim Minchin's mom. Both transglobal superstars happen to be simultaneously debuting in town all this week and next. Jeffries @ Carolines, Minchin @ Ars Nova. Coincidence?
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 4:25 PM | Comments (0)
October 23, 2007
The Benson Interruption @ The UCBT - 10.19.7
Though monthly in LA, The Benson Interruption is staged in NY infrequently enough so that each time it's a huge event. The premise: "Doug Benson invites his fancy, big-name, professional stand-up pals to the stage, but then interrupts whenever he feels like it."
NOTES
--The show sold out super fast and was OOZING WITH PRE-BUZZ. A line of Bensoniacs spreading ALL THE WAY TO THE HORIZON POINT queued up in the rain an hour ahead of showtime for prime seats.
--Marijuana-logues study Rob Cantrell told a story about how he was handcuffed and incarcerated for smoking reefer outside of Pianos. Keep the spliff blasting indoors ya'll.
--ONLY IN LA: According to Paul Scheer: The President of MTV, Human Giant, Pauly Shore, and Russell Crowe recently supped together at the elegant Beverly Hills Hotel!
--We've managed to reconstruct Doug Benson's day from the details provided: Morning: Doug embarks on journey to glorious Staten Island to shoot scenes for Human Giant Season 2. Evening: Doug ventures into seedy underbelly of FOX News Headquarters to appear on Red Eye. Night: Doug concludes travels in basement of value grocer Gristedes to do The Benson Interruption. Benson's whereabouts today however, are unknown.
--Benson had mentioned that there may be 5 comics on the bill (in order: Tony Camin, Rob Cantrell, David Cross, Paul Scheer, and TBA) but the 5th hadn't shown up yet. Sometime after 2AM, Doug interrupts Paul's set to read to the crowd a note that was passed to him which simply said, "Aziz is on the way." The announcement had such a strange affect because at that moment, everyone in the whole entire theater became acutely mindful of the time. 15 minutes of stretch comedy goes by and Doug, feeling the audience had cooled down, wrapped the show before Aziz' arrival.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:48 AM | Comments (2)
October 22, 2007
Closing Night @ Mo Pitkins - 10.21.7
On Sunday night, Mo Pitkins swaggered off into the sunset with a 5-hour finale that captured the charm and the camraderie the venue had always been searching for. "Smoke 'em if you got 'em," announced the emcee, Wonder-Woman clad Seth Herzog, "because there's nothing left to lose." And so people did. The crowded audience of artists, performers, trendsetters, and friends soaked in the vibe for one last time.
There are many factors that can bring about a venue's demise. The cost of doing business in Manhattan is most commonly cited. However, the physical set-up of Mo's is what we believe to be its improbable achilles heel. There was nowhere to stand when waiting for a show, there was nowhere to stand if the seats were filled, and the viewing angles created by the community style table arrangements always made one passively aware that it required effort just to sit and watch. Last night was no different really with the standing/sitting issues, but given the circumstances, we were fine with it.
Over the course of the evening, several dozen artists and performers took the stage one or two at a time to send off Mo's in their own way, a coterie of individual voices creating a motley goodbye choir. Even Mo's scraggly-haired co-owner, Jesse Hartman, saddled into an acoustic guitar to croon a spiteful Scotch-tongued misery ballad about reveling in the failure of others. Oddly, it was in the final moments of the show, with Moby and Lady Rizo singing the burlesque blues, when we finally had a "Do You Realize?" moment. Despite any grumblings we've ever harbored, Mo's was pretty sweet.
As we walked past the liquidated bar and out onto the sidewalk, we thought though we can't ever know what the East Village performing arts scene was like back before it was an extension NYU's campus, the intentions of Mo's owners to create a space that could evoke that era and the space's ultimate collapse, is telling of how far Lower Manhattan has moved away from that.
PREVIOUSLY FEATURED SHOWS AT MO'S
The Other Talent Show @ Mo Pitkins - 12.11.6
How To Kick People @ Mo Pitkins - 11.29.6
CBS/NYC Presents: Louis CK @ Mo Pitkins - 8.14.6
Flight of the Conchords @ Mo Pitkins - 7.17.6
The Other Talent Show @ Mo Pitkins - 5.8.6
Ritalin Readings @ Mo Pitkins - 1.10.6
Jesse Hartman, Owner-Operator/Singer-Songwriter
The night's last performers; Moby on guitar, Lady Rizo on vocals, Chi Chi Jones on burlesque
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 1:52 PM | Comments (1)
September 18, 2007
CBS/NYC Presents: TV Book Club @ Mo Pitkin's - 9.17.7
Harpo Bloom has something to say about The Sopranos ending.
Todd Levin hosts TV Book Club, a new humorous reading series produced by CBS/NYC Presents featuring writers from the world of television.
NOTES
--A visibly rattled Dan Goor admitted at the top of his reading that he doored a bicyclist when lurching out of his car, moments before appearing on stage. Dan is lucky he wasn't beaten mercilessly with a heavy bike chain and he's also fortunate he didn't kill the guy too.
--Dan said he's on paternity leave from Late Night, taking care of TINY INFANT Little Zoey.
--SNL writer Emily Spivey, revealed that her elation over Britney Spears' VMA meltdown caused her to question her own insecurity issues, which seem to all stem from her once railing a dude in a Pontiac Fiero. A Fiero that would later explode, like all the rest of them.
--Harpo Bloom read a few passages from his 24 page analysis of The Sopranos finale, available EXCLUSIVELY at www.Sopranifesto.com. An excerpt:
"The problem I, as a lover of bloody marys, personally had with the finale is that I've blacked out during the show many times over the years so I was left feeling like I've already seen Chase do this same trick before. Not to mention the directors of The View , Oprah and many others... If you felt screwed over after being abruptly severed from The Sopranos when you were trying to look at Meadow come in, just imagine how newborn baby Tony Soprano felt being pushed out of his mother's cozy womb, being held up to her sneering face and not yet able to articulate his "What the fuck?!" feeling. I know how it feels having once been born myself..."
Emily Spivey
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:26 AM | Comments (0)
August 29, 2007
Hard 'N Phirm @ The Hudson Theatre - 8.26.7
Chris Hardwick and Mike Phirman played at the spacious and grand Hudson Theater to tape their first television special, Comedy Central Presents: Hard 'N Phirm.
NOTES
--The taping was split into two sets: Lavell Crawford & Hard 'N Phirm. Larger than life Lavell--who looked just like Spidey archvillain, The Kingpin, in his grey suit and salmon shirt--is on THE FAST TRACK TO SOMETHING with an appearance at Aspen, a finalist slot on Last Comic Standing, and his own half-hour special all within the same year.
--At the end of Lavell's half, the stage manager shuffled around the audience members in the first couple of rows. The emcee said CCP doesn't want the same folks on camera twice... which appeared to actually mean: Brown people OUT, White people IN.
--But did the nerdy tunes of Hard 'N Phirm go over with this MALTSTREAM crowd? Yes! Melodicas + reciting the decimals of Pi + waving American flags to ditties about dinosaurs = UNIVERSAL APPEAL. Commitment goes a long way.
--Chris & Mike have a funny song called Love is Like a Simile in which they belt out obvious and redundant lyrics with all the passion and idiocy of rockers Savage Garden. "I wrap my arms around you... cuz that's the only way I know how to have you in my arms." You can hear it at the end of this AST Radio podcast featuring Hard 'N Phirm..
--SPOTTED: Television star Scott Adsit was seen amongst the crowd, laughing and cooing at the things that were funny. Just like us!
--One last thing worth mentioning: we thought it was pretty cool that Hardwick was personally putting H'NP superfans on the VIP list for this show.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 9:28 AM | Comments (5)
August 2, 2007
Inside Joke w/ Ian Roberts, Matt Besser, & Matt Walsh @ The UCBT - 7.26.7
It's neat to think about how the actions of a couple people can have a direct impact on the lives of many, as the landscape would be radically different without a handful of folks discovering an affinity for improv in Chicago nearly 20 years ago. On this edition of Inside Joke, Carl Arnheiter welcomes to the stage the reason everyone is here, the founders of The UCBT, Ian Roberts, Matt Besser, & Matt Walsh.
NOTES
--Seeing the seminal late 80's Chicago improv group Blue Velveeta perform was cited by both Roberts and Besser as a defining moment in their attraction to improv. There's not a lot of info about the troupe online, but Brian Stack talks about Blue Velveeta a bit in this expansive interview here.
--The guys were brought together at ImprovOlympic in Chicago in 1989/1990. The UCB moved to NYC in 1997 with three shows in their pocket: two sketch comedy revues and ASSSSCAT. They began performing and gaining popularity at places like the Luna Lounge, which led to the opening of the theater shortly thereafter.
--Carl asked, "Do you think anyone can learn to improvise?" Walsh replied, "You can learn to be as good as you're capable. It's teachable. Some people have the magic." But can you teach people to be funny? Roberts answered, "You can, in a way."
--The guys claim to have had the FIRST internet comedy show, something they created in 1996 called The Emergency Broadcast Network.
--Upright Citizens Brigade was the most expensive show on Comedy Central at the time. One note the network gave to them: get rid of the whole UCB thing.
--Roberts' parents were nestled in the crowd. They had British accents, the kind popularized by the Harry Potter movies.
--INSIDE INSIDE JOKE: The signature Rice Krispies treats eaten by guests on stage are made with butter that is supposedly hand churned by Carl himself!
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 1:48 PM | Comments (0)
July 30, 2007
The Del Close Marathon 9 @ The UCBT - 7.27.7 - 7.29.7
Ari Voukydis and Anthony Atamanuik in Wicked Fuckin' Queeyah, improv with a distinct Boston vibe.
Sifting through the Nicoderm dream of another raging Del Close Marathon, with its vividly intense flashes of brilliance stopping abruptly in the face of waking life, it's impossible to put a definitive take on the event because one's experience varies drastically depending on one's level of involvement with improv and the community at large. Though there was something engaging for everyone--the disciples, the stargazers, the casual observers, and the pilgrims--generally speaking, the DCM is tailored for the hardcore and the initiated as a means to bring together our jutting paths. It's also a breathy coquette's whisper in the ears of the next generation of improv stars.
The marathon is a marvelous feat of planning and engineering too, in that it's able to be pulled off so smoothly. 50 continuous hours of performance and guest relations and artist coordination and stocking beer and teching and keeping everyone happy and minding building codes--that ain't easy. The DCM is in a lot of ways a technical manifestation of improvisation as a whole: in the hands of the pro UCB staff, the madness onstage and in the beer soaked back hallways seems always magically controlled with an invisible net of trust, support, and respect. Does that make sense?
Instead of highlighting any particular show, especially since the bombardier presentation style of the DCM lobs everything in one ear and out the other, here are some stories and anecdotes from the weekend.
The Scene Backstage
By: Rebecca Ciletti
While the crowd stood shoulder to shoulder packed in tight in the thick heat watching the UCB Del Close marathon this weekend, just as many people could be found hanging out in the back room and tunnels of the theater.
Entering the back room was like entering the 5 circles of hell. Or the set of Knocked Up or Undeclared or any Judd Apatow project appealing to the 20-something male. In the crammed Green Room Matt Walsh showed off photos of his new baby while Ed Helms, Horatio Sanz and Rob Riggle milled about. "Is this the Del Close marathon or the Del Close sauna?" Jon Daly asked. A woman gave back massages for $1 per minute. She had a massage chair and everything. It was a lot like Burning Man.
In the hallway, the air was thick with smoke and a giant, red plastic cigarette butt disposer sat by the door under a handwritten sign that read "No Smoking." The beer line wrapped down the wet hallway and people squeezed past, in and out of the back room. The back room was the real reason why everyone was there. Free beer, free jungle juice and couches.
I wish I could say I made it out of the Green Room, I heard that there were a lot of great shows, fun costumes and even nudity, but I'm still there as I write this.
Photo courtesy of Ari Scott
Sound Bytes From the 2007 Del Close Marathon
By: Eliot Glazer
If The DCM were a flavor of ice cream: "Melted chocolate, vanilla, strawberry Neapolitan on the sidewalk next to a mailbox." - Will Hines
If The DCM were a superhero: "Staminaman because he doesn't have to sleep and can drink a lot without getting really tired (but only for 50 hours at a time because he has to take the occasional break." - Peter Grosz
If The DCM were a candybar: "A Snickers Marathon Bar, an energy bar that used to be a chain-link shaped chocolate-covered caramel treat that lasts a really, really long time." - Peter Gwinn
If The DCM were a tween sitcom: " Electrify My Tennis Shoes." - Rob Riggle
If The DCM were a nursing home: "The Neverending Death Community." - John Oliver
If The DCM were a breed of dog: - "An over bred pug, shaped like a meatball dressed in a baby gown, pushed in a carriage by a poodle" - Laura Krafft
If The DCM were a sneaker: "The Sweatshop Special" - Ed Helms
If The DCM were a condiment: "Peanut Butter & Jelly combined." - Chuck Dauble
If The DCM were a variety of condom: - "Twisted Pleasure." - Chris Kula
If The DCM were a type of houseplant: "A creeping vine: you never know where it ends or where it began." - Christina Gausas
If The DCM were an after-school club: "Drunken Sonic Assault." - Charlie Todd
If The DCM were a type of flower: "Magnolia - it only blooms once a year." - Charlie Sanders
If The DCM were an article of clothing often worn by a middle aged woman: "A bracelet decorated with Egyptian scarabs." - Brian Faas
If The DCM were a chapter of the Bible: "I've never read The Bible." - Heather Fink
If The DCM were a piece of jewelry: "A hunk of ugly gold." - Jason Mantzoukas
RELATED LINKS
The OFFICIAL DCM Highlights Thread
Ari Scott's Extensive DCM 2007 Photo Set
Zach Linder's Extensive DCM 2007 Photo Set
A Los Angeleno Tourist Posts Her Photos
Improve Your Improv By 200% for Only $20
A Weekend of Highlights
Hey, That's My Improv Teacher Onstage Crazying it Up
The Only Event Where Everyone's Allowed to Be a Little Retarded?
Thank Yous to the DCM Staff
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Pre-DCM Tips!
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT 2: Mid-DCM Tips!
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 1:11 PM | Comments (1)
July 26, 2007
Matt Besser's Magical Sack of Dump @ The UCBT - 7.25.7
In town for the DCM, Matt Besser chatted with the audience, performed a collection of bits from his one man shows, and showed off some of his latest shorts in this assemblage titled Matt Besser's Magical Sack of Dump.
NOTES
--With religion and its banal codes and guidelines being a recurring frustration throughout Besser's life, Matt proposed revising the Ten Commandments in favor of an updated set of rulez. Commandment number 1: "Don't touch me!" His 5th commandment, "Close the screen door," admittedly did not go over well with this urban crowd who only know about screen doors from the movies or Page Six.
--"How many people out there are in this freaky ass-fuck kid-fuck cult?" Matt asked, in an attempt to see what percentage of the audience was Catholic. Donning a papal head dressing, Besser needled Random Audience Members with an infallible 'gay or not' quiz. "When you are eating breakfast, do you choose a sausage and a donut... or a sausage and a sausage?"
--The biggest pops of the night came from his character Jason Yellow, a stand up comedian who is deaf, blind, and missing both of his arms, aka, the winner of the fictional tv series/UCB LA stage show America's Best Comic. "I'm so blind, I don't even know how to hate black people."
--Other topics included the N-word (we simply hate typing it!), how you can tell an asshole from the kind of hat he wears, and reefer.
--According to mattbesser.com, Matt is looking to take his magical dump sack on the road. If you live in Portland, Seattle, or San Diego, get in touch with the man.
Besser as Jason Yellow
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:09 AM | Comments (2)
July 20, 2007
UCB in the Park @ Central Park SummerStage - 7.19.7
Despite poor weather earlier in the day and the ground being as swampy as a Louisiana groin fold, attendees turned out en masse for the UCBT's annual SummerStage showcase in Central Park. In case you missed it, here is a photo narrative of the night's events so you can feel like you were there!
Woops, we're a little bit late to the show, we hope the other performers (who aren't pictured here) don't notice. Hey look over there, it's Horatio Sanz!
And Rob Riggle! They hosted the show together.
Stickerbook takes over the stage. Get ready to floor punch!
To play an accordian is a lot like making love to an accordian
Stickerbook's light jams are so smooth, they make Random Audience Members dance and weep
Horatio and Rob announce that they have the 2nd highest attended Central Park show behind Simon and Garfunkel in 1981; To honor them, they performed in the manner of the legendary rockers
People were asked to put their feet together for the next performer...
Continue reading "UCB in the Park @ Central Park SummerStage - 7.19.7"
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 12:20 PM | Comments (3)
June 18, 2007
Michael Ian Black: I Am a Wonderful Man @ The PIT - 6.14.7
Michael Ian Black made the first of a brief series of NYC stand-up appearances at The PIT to test out material for use on an upcoming CD titled, I Am a Wonderful Man.
NOTES
--Topics covered included white power, the public relations successes of the Nazi party, tacos, a recent gig in New Orleans, him being not gay, him having kids, his tepid appreciation of The Black Crowes, and other stuff.
--Several college co-eds cooed loudly during a joke about art history professors' disproportionately heightened skills at railing their students. If honesty is what makes something funny, which area art history professor was banging half the people in the front row?
--MIB needs to be more mindful of his potential audience. Some visual elements of his set--such as the hand miming of his sphincter contractions--may be lost on his future compact-disc loving listeners.
--Michael still has two more small NYC shows in case you missed this one. If you've never seen him do straight stand up outside of Stella, now is your chance. It's almost as satisfying as an ice cold 2-Liter of Sierra Mist on a humid Summer's eve. Who knows when he'll be making appearances again.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 1:19 PM | Comments (1)
May 25, 2007
Inside Joke @ The UCBT - 5.24.7
On this edition of Inside Joke with Carl Arnheiter, special guest Steve Guttenberg took the UCBT stage to talk about his career and share his knowledge. Dave Hill opened the show.
NOTES
--Carl's hair is getting lengthy! Lengthy like a young Mick Jagger! And also like a middle aged Mick Jagger and an old Mick Jagger.
--Several other Guttenbergs and one POTENTIAL GUTTENBERG were revealed to be in the crowd including Steve's Mom, his sister, and his GF. Everyone else in the audience was revealed to be from Long Island!
--FUN FACT: Steve said that renowned Human Giant hater Tom Selleck was almost cast as Indiana Jones.
--What do you do when you're working on a project that you feel has taken a turn for the stink? Steve says you have to talk yourself into it, you lie to yourself. Steve noted that the whole situation is worse when that project is a play.
--The Guttes speaks out about the women he's kissed on screen. Kim Cattrall: "Good kisser." Sharon Stone: "Good kisser. Nice lady." Jami Gertz: "Whiny kisser. Nice lady."
--Carl posed several "How would the Real Steve Guttenberg handle this scenario questions?" If a cruiseline was attacked by terrorists, Steve confessed, "I would hide! I wouldn't save anyone."
--At the end of the show, Carl challenged Steve to see who could cry on demand the fastest. They dimmed the lights and queued up a couple tracks of weepy hit songs to set the mood and it seemed like after a minute, Carl was actually beginning to well up! Guttenberg comforted Arnheiter with a tender and prolonged embrace.
--Steve uses the word BULLDINKY in place of more extreme expletives.
--Think you have what it takes to watch every SG film ever made? See one blogger's attempts at The Steve Guttenberg Project
Photos by Andrew Dickerson.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 1:22 PM | Comments (0)
May 17, 2007
Mark & Ari in LOFT @ UCBT - 5.16.7
Mark Sarian and Ari Voukydis premiered their latest short sketch show LOFT last night at the UCBT.
NOTES
--LOFT is loosely thematically structured around the incidental elements of the TV series, LOST, but in an apartment setting. Some issues covered: turning into our fathers, landlords of ethnicity, the Dharma Initiative sponsored misadventures of putting together IKEA furniture, and hilljacks intelligently deconstructing the film Delta Farce.
--Mark & Ari ended two sketches with their characters succumbing to implied make out sessions. Remember the age-old theatre adage, dudes: "You're not gay if it takes place on-stage."
--A lone Will Arnett look-a-like was sitting in one of the side seats, chewing gum and acting rather celebrity-ish, causing us to continually wonder "Is that Will Arnett over there?" for most of the first act on the bill, Smellin' Up the Den. (They were enjoyable too, btw.)
--Mark & Ari's next performance is Wednesday, May 30th.
Ari prefers to wear his fannypack around his upper abdomen.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:09 AM | Comments (4)
April 27, 2007
Invite Them Up, 5th Anniversary Show @ Rififi - 4.25.7
NOTES
--Kurt and Kristen served up the wildest performance of the night. A tale of survival as the secret twin children of hero Amelia Erhart--a story which delightfully ended with a fierce interpretive dance in costly glowstick bedazzled costumes. If Kurt and Kristen were a movie, that movie would be Just Bring It, because they're always just bringin' it and stuff.
--One endeavor in anti-comedy involved Jon Glaser as the world's angriest stand-up... who happens to be really really quiet and shy. He stood for 6 minutes in the corner of the stage with his back to the audience while muttering things about how life is hard. It got a lot of cackles from Eugene.
--David Wain did 30 Seconds of Stand Up. He had us at some riff about grain elevators.
--SPOTTED AT THE AFTERPARTY: Claudia Cogan, Todd Barry, Jemaine from FOTC, Jon Daly, Lang Fisher, Craig Baldo, Michael Showalter, Zak Orth, Noah Garfinkel, Jenny Slate, and OTHERS.
--There was an auction after the show for comedy paraphernalia, with the proceeds going towards the completion of Rififi's renovations. Hopefully all that beer that was sold that night went to the completion of Rififi's renovations too!
--A date with Kurt and Kristen was auctioned off for $40. Kristen remarked on stage at how embarrassing the amount was noting, "Now I know If I was a hooker, I would die on the streets."
--Chicago's Hannibal Buress revealed that he's spending some time on Liam McEneaney's couch this week. Expect to see him all around town at other shows.
--Watch Bobby's opening statements from the evening, courtesy of Scott Bateman.
--Happy Anniversary!
Arj Barker
Eugene and Bobby auction off a vest worn by Demetri Martin.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:17 AM | Comments (1)
April 3, 2007
WrestleSlamMania 2 @ UCBT - 3.31.7
Crash Into Me: After slipping Future Chuck McMahon a roofie, Frat Guy gains control of the match
On the eve of Wrestlemania 23, the UCBW held its own pay-per-view, WrestleSlamMania 2.
--Only one word can describe the experience of a UCBW event and that word is slobberknocker. The matches were well thought out, satirizing the silliness and plotholes of professional wrestling with a drippy amount of both adoration and wit.
--For example, the womens' ladder match featured the girls setting up ladders really far away from the hanging title. In real wrestling, the pros climb these ladders and reach for the belt with such painfully cartoonish suspense anyways, seeing such acts like this exaggerated even more makes the spectacle so fun to watch.
--On-camera interviews were conducted live backstage and fed to the theatre's newfangled flat panel monitor displays. In between matches, they ran teaser Q&A's between the fast talking announcers and the main event contenders: Pu Kang Kang and Marz.
--Pu Kang Kang, aka Eugene Cordero, won the World Championship.
--Don't know if the WWE's paying much attention to what's going on here, but the brains behind this show have a terriffic sense of ring psychology and the creative aspects of wrestling. Get a scout from the WWE camp to one of these big UCBW shows and he or she might walk away with some new writers and an exchange program of some kind.
Announcers Eric Scott and Ben Rodgers are shocked. Just shocked.
The Foreign Menace taunts a Random Audience Member.
So close. So far away.
Marz digs deep to rally out of this devastating submission move.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 7:11 PM | Comments (0)
Tube Time Video Gameshow @ The New York Underground Film Festival - 3.31.7
Gabe Leidman hosted the 2nd annual Tube Time Video Gameshow for the New York Underground Film Festival at the Anthology Film Forum. The show promo guaranteed: "[T]he wildest content known--until now--only to the most provocative laptops. Famous, sexy and funny NYUFF celebrities go head-to-head, competing to put the most outrageous videos they find on the Internet onto the silver screen."
--A field of 20 or so contestants were seated on the stage. In this single elimination tournament, 2 at a time would present pre-selected videos they found online. The video with the most applause, or the least amount of boos rather, would allow its presenter to move onto the next round. The loser was uncermoniously booted from the stage. In successive rounds, each contestant would show a new video from their stash. This continued til 1 person remained.
--We caught up with contestant Chelsea Peretti before the show and asked about her expectations for the event. She nailed it right on the head with a vision of technical difficulties and confusion. Peretti set the tone with the very first video of the evening: "Bears Mauling Outdoorsmen." In an ironic or perhaps precognitive twist of fate, it was a technical difficulty--one which abruptly crashed Chelsea's unusual video of an elderly cowgirl making out with a stuffed animal--that sent Peretti (happily?) packing after the second round.
--Jessy Delfino was dealt a crushing defeat in the first round. Apparently, the most outrageous video she found on the Internet starred Jessy Delfino and the rowdy audience did not take kindly to the self promotion.
--BUZZOVER: Overhearing Delfino say she got a record deal.
--Cash wagers on the contestants were being processed before the show. We were three little cell phone taps away (911) from having this illegal gambling ring shut down and having the whole Anthology Film Forum padlocked and boarded up... but we got distracted by the free Svedka vodka w/o mixers. FourFour's Rich Juzwiak was the odds frontrunner.
--Rich won the championship with a stirring showing of mostly self produced media clips and this classic.
--Contestants included: Rich Juzwiak, Chelsea Peretti, Lang Fisher, Paddy Johnson, John Michael Boling, Ben Coonley, John Seroff, Joe Johnston, Jaime Pereira, Cat Krudy, John Thomson, Matt Savitsky, Dan Carbone, Jessica Delfino, Bobby Langdon, Josh Safdie, Sam Lisenco, Brina Thurston, Naomi Leibowitz, and Kendra Levin.
The pre-show odds.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 1:32 PM | Comments (0)
March 15, 2007
Eddie Pepitone @ The Motel - 3.13.7
The great Eddie Pepitone bursted another major blood vessel in front of a couple dozen urban professionals and admiring comedians at The Motel, a cozy monthly stand up showcase in Greenwich Village.
Eddie Pepitone, rapper for the insecure and depressed. (NSFW language)
Video courtesy of John Morrison.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 10:36 AM | Comments (2)
February 26, 2007
Richard Lewis @ Comix - 2.23.6
Legendary comedian Richard Lewis was in town over the weekend to do a couple of sets at Comix
--If No Fear made a t-shirt that said "Richard Lewis is life, the rest is just details," we might own one. Richard Lewis ringtones will have to suffice.
--Tried to get an interview with him last week to promo the show, but things fell through. The world will never know the answer to this question: In a bizarre incident at The Ohio State University in 2000, a basketball program guide listed the various noted alumni of the university. You were listed as "Richard Lewis: Actor, Writer, Comedian, Drunk." It was interpreted as either a nefarious dig or a possible poorly edited reference to the movie Drunks. Considering your well-documented sobriety and the fact you had done a lot of things for OSU as an alumnus, you were justifiably upset by this oversight; at least one person resigned over the incident. Do you continue to have a relationship with OSU?
--All of the other questions were about Boku: How'd they make it? Why didn't they give you a straw? Where can we get some?
--Anyways, Richard works really blue. A lot of his material was about his wiener and/or stroking his wiener. He says he's been sober for 11 years and has never cheated on his wife. Way 2 go!
--Richard Lewis on aging: "It's over. Look at me, every part of my body... is over." To someone taking a flash-photo: "Who are you, Jack Ruby? You should just shoot me."
--The crowd was packed and hot and hostile towards chatty audience members.
--It would be interesting to see what his act is like from show to show. It seems like so much of it is disconnected ranting as he paces and staggers and crumples himself against the backboard of the stage. It should be noted that he mentioned he does not have an act.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 4:28 PM | Comments (0)
February 16, 2007
Alan Zweibel's "The History of Me" @ The PIT - 2.15.7
By: Keith Huang
Alan Zweibel's foray into comedy and show business came by default. In the beginning, the nice Jewish boy from Long Island meant to be a lawyer, but repeated attempts at lifting his LSAT scores only brought failure, largely due to his "vegetable mentality," he says. But it was through failure that Zweibel ultimately found the opportunity to pursue his dream of becoming a professional comedy writer.
On Thursday night at The People's Improv Theater, Zweibel (pronounced zwigh-BELL) workshopped his one-man show, "The History of Me." Zweibel, who has been writing comedy since the '70s, is perhaps best known for the five years he spent writing for the original cast of Saturday Night Live, though other credits include "It's Garry Shandling's Show" and numerous well-known screenplays, books and television scripts.
But even as he approaches 60, Zweibel, who has won five Emmies, six Ace Awards and two Writers Guild of America Awards, is still challenging himself: "I'm a comedy writer," he begins the show. "I'm not used to being out in front of an audience like this."
In the discreet elegance of oral tradition, "The History of Me" finds Zweibel sharing his private stash of anecdotes that have been cut like diamonds after countless years of tellings for friends and family. As expected, Zweibel talks about his salad days at SNL.
"The most fun I ever had was when I was working at the beginning of that show," he says. "We put on the fourth-grade play every week. It was a communal thing." Throughout, Zweibel drops the big names of comedy -- Lorne Michaels, Freddy Roman, Buck Henry, Belushi, Akroyd, Crystal -- but he does it without braggadocio. These comedy statesmen are merely reference points in his personal timeline of American comedy.
Above them all, though, Zweibel lauds Gilda Radner, his mensch, muse, first friend and comedic collaborator at SNL (together they would create the legendary "Roseanne Roseannadanna" and "Emily Litella"). In fact, for "History of Me," Zweibel assumedly winnowed down his Radner commentary since he's already written a book, "Bunny Bunny: Gilda Radner -- A Sort of Love Story," from which he also adapted a successful play.
Nevertheless, in one touching story, Zweibel describes visiting Radner during the early stages of her ovarian cancer. "In her house there were pictures of all of our kids -- Harold Ramis's kids, Marty Short's kids, my kids, everyone's kids," he says. "She just wanted to be reminded of hope and optimism. And she became this incredible symbol that you can lead a quality of life even though you have this affliction."
With these stories, Zweibel the comedy writer knows that attention to, and respect for detail is often the simple catalyst for human emotion. And Zweibel has been around audiences long enough to know there's a fine line between keeping people engaged with stories of the "old days" and becoming self-indulgent. But with each turn in his show, Zweibel pointedly reveals a simple truth about his career and life. And as any comedy maven knows, truth is the atomic substance from which the best comedy is derived. Zweibel will showcase "The History of Me" at the upcoming HBO Comedy Festival in Aspen, Colorado.
-- Keith Huang is a regular contributor to The Apiary and Gelf Magazine.
Posted by keithhuang in Show Recap at 12:52 PM | Comments (0)
February 9, 2007
Comic Book Club @ The PIT - 2.6.7
The Comic Book Club--hosted by Alex Zalben, Justin Tyler, and Pete LePage--meets every Tuesday at 9:30 at The PIT. Joe Quesada, the Editor in Chief of Marvel Comics was tonight's special guest. The show is sponsored by Midtown Comics.
NOTES
--Attention anyone else hosting a show anywhere: Joe Quesada IS IN FACT A DRAW. The show was SOLD OUT.
--Joe encouraged the crowd to groan "Ugggggghhhh" whenever DC Comics came up as a talking point during the discussion.
--After a series of gay themed riffs, someone jokingly remarked, "When Joe Q comes to the house, everyone turns gay." Joe responded, "That's my mutant power." Joe then stated that that statement will probably wind up on the Internet. And what do you know, HERE IT IS.
--Question Answered: Why does a decidedly second tier book like Daredevil attract the top talents in the comic book industry? Quesada thinks it's because DD is the most Shakespearean in the Marvel stable--everything Matthew Murdoch does is to the extreme and he's just cool.
--The ukelele loving Hazzards sang a couple songs--one of which was about boners. In an attempt to relate to the crowd, Hazzard Anne Harris mentioned her boyfriend's former love for Magic: The Gathering. Anne--this was a comic book club, not a social outcast club. If we wanted to hear about your boyfriend's Mox Emeralds or his Shivan Dragon, we'd simply tap two mana and go on a TimeWalk.
--2 of the 5 people on the couches cited the New Warriors as profound childhood influences. This cements what we've always suspected: WE ARE THE NIGHT THRASHER GENERATION.
--SPOILERS and secrets were revealed about future comic book storylines. We didn't really understand any of it though.
--RE: PARALLEL ARTISTIC STRUGGLES: Joe Q. toils daily to create quality books that are as accessible to the average person as they are to the rabid fan. He hopes one day comics would lose their typecasting as being just kiddie stuff or that of something inferior to the artistic dialogue.
Marvel Comics Editor in Chief, Joe Quesada
Alex Zalben and Joe Quesada
The Hazzards
Random Audience Member and Justin Tyler
Boothman in a Vagina Costume
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 4:42 PM | Comments (1)
February 8, 2007
Laugh Don't Destroy @ Union Hall - 2.6.7
By: Matt Sklar
On Tuesday night, Park Slope's Union Hall hosted the Develop Don't Destroy Benefit Show. Comedians from Brooklyn (Andrea Rosen, Eugene Mirman) and Manhattan (Jon Benjamin) performed on behalf of the non-profit organization dedicated to stopping overdevelopment of the borough, in particular the Atlantic Yards Arena project. The show was hosted by television commercial star Baron Vaughn and also featured performances from Patrick Borelli, Robin Cloud, Bobby Tisdale, Chelsea Peretti, Michael Showalter, Gilad Foss, and Jon Benjamin.
NOTES
--Bobby Tisdale, filling in for an absent Kristen Schaal, got the older, benefit-loving crowd going the only way he knows how: with chants of 'Develop Don't Destroy! Develop Don't Destroy! Develop Don't Destroy! ATTABOY!' Host Baron Vaughn also mentioned that Bobby is starring in a new show on Super Deluxe.
--Gilad Foss wowed the audience with spot-on impressions of Martin Luther King Jr. and Miss Piggy.
--An awkward tension arose halfway through when a stone faced gentleman sitting in the front row expressed his dislike of the show to Jon Benjamin. His continued hate-filled presence made the rest of the comedians uncomfortable enough that headliner (and Develop Don't Destroy advisory board member) Michael Showalter justifiably dressed him down, and Eugene Mirman handed him back the $20 admission fee from his own wallet.
--Jon Benjamin showed a video detailing his first trip into Brooklyn--which was clearly filmed in his East Village neighborhood.
--Chelsea Peretti railed against the young clubgoers and Paris Hilton-types that are overpopulating the city these days. Is it just us, or is Chelsea's comedy getting funnier the more bitter she gets?
--Showalter made everyone jealous with a slide show of his trip to the Super Bowl, where he received first class treatment thanks to the coattails of Michael Ian Black, Jim Gaffigan, and the Pepsi Co. (It really pays to have a commercial run during the Super Bowl).
RELATED READING
All About the Atlantic Yards Project
Reactions to the Recently Approved Plan
Frank Gehry's Monstrosity in All its Glory
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 12:44 PM | Comments (3)
February 2, 2007
4 Shades of Black @ The PIT - 2.1.6
By: Keith Huang
The Brooklyn Comedy Company brought their wares to the People's Improv Theater Thursday night, making sure to remind the multicultural audience that February 1st marks the beginning of Black History Month. Though, at the top of BcCo member Larry Bailey's set, he remarked that Black History Month feels a bit like holiday segregation, shouting, "Get to the back of the calendar!"
BcCo, founded by Elon James White, has been around since 2004, and while all the standups in the collective are black and mine much material from life as a black person, what's far more prominent is the be-yourself, be-honest, and speak from the height of your intelligence-simplicity with which they approach their sets. Whether it's being mistaken for Scary Spice, the drawbacks of having a glass eye, or dropping the chorus to The Human League's most famous hit, the BcCo comedians know self-deprecation is not only funny, but a good way to connect with any audience. And like every other standup collective, above all, the BcCo just want to do their thing, their way.
"4 Shades of Black is a stand-up comedy show with a purpose. This group of diverse stand-ups prove that breaking the black comedic stereotype is not only funny, it's hilarious. Featuring: Baron Vaughn, Elon James White, Larry Bailey & Michelle Buteau." 4 Shades of Black runs every Thursday at The PIT through the month of February. More photos from this show HERE.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:58 AM | Comments (5)
January 5, 2007
Talk Show with Bob Wiltfong @ The PIT - 1.4.7
By: Keith Huang
Former Daily Show correspondent Bob Wiltfong's newest project at The People's Improv Theater, Talk Show With Bob Wiltfong, has been billed as a "show for the 22nd century"--a century which manages to retain many of the familiarities of today such as frisky rats, videoconferencing, and Liam McEneaney.
The inaugural episode began with a live-camera feed outside the theater where Wiltfong lured a passerby to come in for an interview, setting the proverbial stage for Wiltfong's earnest what-you-see-is-what-you-get style of comedy. Next, Wiltfong spoke to Raquel Cintron and Kendra Mara of The New York City Rat Meetup Group--a tough act to follow, but no major challenge for seasoned standup McEneaney. Finally, to close the show, musician Nicola very literally rocked the house with an acoustic guitar.
Perhaps the most endearing moments of the evening came when Wiltfong played "Would You Rather...?" with his mother and brother live via Webcam--posing hypotheticals about pornography, The Oak Ridge Boys, and an ejaculating Snuffleupagus to both parties. "Come on, folks, this is my mom here," Wiltfong would say, mocking the audience's discomfort. But it is quite apparent Wiltfong's humor was first bred at home and that funny is a household word amongst his family.
Talk Show With Bob Wiltfong can be seen at The PIT every Thursday at 8PM in a double-header with improv gurus, Threat. TICKETS
RELATED
More Photos From the Show
An Interview with Bob Wiltfong
Rats: The Perfect New Millennium Pet for Busy Families
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December 15, 2006
Invite Them Up @ The Bowery Ballroom - 12.14.6
Eugene Mirman and Bobby Tisdale brought their celebrated friends to The Bowery Ballroom for a year-end Invite Them Up blowout.
NOTES
--The show was sponsored by SuperDeluxe.com, a promising looking broadband network produced by Turner that is launching in January. More info HERE.
--Many of the night's performers have stuff in development with SuperDeluxe.
--A lucky Random Audience Member was presented a 250 dollar wad of CASH on-stage with the condition that she somehow use that money to make a video for SuperDeluxe. Seconds after being handed the money, she crazily raced through the venue tossing it into the air.
--BIG POPS: Reggie Watts on mouthsex, Kristen Schaal and Kurt Braunohler (as Jesus) having a Dirty Dancing moment to "(I've Had) The Time of My Life," and Jon Glaser's wicked heel turn as Jonny Attitude.
--Daniel Kitson was SPOTTED enjoying some cotton candy with John Oliver. Anyone know what Kitson is up to here?
--John Oliver has never heard of Ween.
--Not as big a crowd as last year's show. One blogger is wondering whether the turnout is a measure of a burst comedy bubble. Eugene Mirman gave a starstruck fan an "aneurysm of joy" less than 2 days ago in LA, so we think it has more to do with the promotion than anything else and that the bubble is a-okay.
--More pics from the show at the ITU MySpace page.
Gabe Leidman & Jenny Slate do a solid impression of the Indigo Girls 69-ing each other
Jonny Attitude, we thought you were sincere
Paul F. Tompkins
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December 12, 2006
The Other Talent Show @ Mo Pitkins - 12.11.6
The Other Talent Show, hosted by Jon Friedman and Michelle Collins, offers comedians and performers a showcase to display their hidden talents. This event was produced in conjunction with CBS/NYC Presents.
NOTES
--Burlesque performer Molly Crabapple pulled a Tara Reid while showing off her superb ability at escaping seductively from a straight-jacket.
--An audience thirsty for talents watched a flu-addled Adam Wade struggle to chip a single golf ball from one side of the stage into an oversized bucket a few feet away.
--WACKY PRE SHOW RITUALS?: Michelle Collins & filing police reports.
--Kristen Schaal is pictured here mere moments before unleashing a crushing barrage of strikes on a bread-perp.
--A representative from The Face Time was there and collected the face of Late Night writer Michael Koman.
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November 30, 2006
How To Kick People @ Mo Pitkins - 11.29.6
This edition of How to Kick People, the monthly reading series hosted by Bob Powers and Todd Levin, featured four writers from Late Night with Conan O'Brien.
--Bob Powers' long awaited blog-to-book comes out on December 26th: Happy Cruelty Day!: Daily Celebrations of Quiet Desperation
--Michael Koman, the Late Night writer with the most tenure of the four writers invited to HTKP, recounted a story fit for a memoir. At 9 years old, little Michael found himself placed under the supervision of a loose nanny named Dara, whose dubious ability to sit babies was put to task. Where the heck was Nancy Grace to ask, "How young is too young to help glue sequins to your babysitter's bellybutton?"
--Jose Arroyo presented a piece via a series of illustrated posterboards depicting himself interpretive dancing. Jose, who commented that he looks more like a Morty than a Jose, has been with Late Night since the fall of 2002.
--Dan Goor's relationship with his war bond-selling Grandpa was irreparably STRAINED TO THE GRAVE when at the age of 7, Goor looked his grandfather in the eye and said, "Aren't treasury bills a bad investment?"
--Treasury bills are a bad investment.
--SPOTTED: The Brazilian Muse and SEVERAL CONAN STAFFERS
Michael Koman
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November 14, 2006
Billy the Mime @ The UCB - 11.11.6
A tender moment in the scene titled "Terri Schiavo, Adieu"
If truth and expectation are two of the most cited elements of what makes something funny, then the simple function of the comic actor is to present scenes to an audience in a unique way that connects with our shared experience. Billy the Mime takes loathsome truths and packages them into vulgar displays of movement and tableau. Billy's show is not a carefree jaunt to the theatre, it is however, a SARDONIC TRIP THROUGH HELL-O-L.
Billy begins each of his scenes with a somber spotlight cast upon him and a cheap placard denoting what we are about to see: "The Priest and the Altar Boy," "The Abortion," and "A Day Called 9/11," to name a few. The audience gives a knowing groan, and depending on one's emotional attachment to each of the motifs, eyes will cautiously fixate on or away from the performer. We think we know the endings and we think we know the journeys of each of these sordid romps, but Billy takes everyone to a place where no one wants to go.
"A Day Called 9/11" ends with a hijacker fucking his 6 dozen virgins in Heaven. United 93, it's not, but it is still wrenching to watch Billy play two characters, an everyman and a hijacker, plod and plot along to the inevitable. The titters, if one succumbs to any in this particular scene, come via the monstrous exaggerations of Billy's movements--the father tickling his baby goochie-goo before heading to work in the North Tower, or a hijacker raising his boxcutter to Allah to let loose a muted jihaddic yodel.
Interspersed are a few mildly lighthearted affairs, like "Thomas and Sally: A Night at the Monticello," which features a randy Thomas Jefferson who keeps dismissing himself from his own dinner party to partake in the carnal pleasures of a nubile slavemaiden. Imagine watching a Sim canoodle, x-rated style.
Haunting background melodies, such as a music box version of Smells Like Teen Spirit in "Curt Kobain, Why?" and a throbbing disco beat to accompany the rhythm of the throbbing members of "San Francisco Nights, 1979," help pack the emotional wallop.
Billy the Mime's flamboyant depictions of people and occurrences are what makes his capers both funny and upsetting, and in doing that, his art never fails to remind the viewer that the unsettling truths of these matters are far more hideous than the wispy embers of what we have come to recollect or the details we've forsaken.
Billy and a Random Audience Member perform in "The Clown and the Beautiful Woman"
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November 13, 2006
The Sound of Young America Live @ The PIT - 11.10.6
Heather Lawless takes us through a typical day of her life
America's Radio Sweetheart, Jesse Thorn, recorded two episodes of The Sound of Young America live at The PIT on Friday. Pics and notes are from the first show. Both will be available as podcasts soon at www.maximumfun.org
NOTES
--Despite a palpable feeling of being SURROUNDED BY WEB MAVENS, when Jesse asked how many people in the crowd have never heard of TSOYA, there were quite a few hands clapping.
--Mike Daisey, professional monologist, says the preferred way of saying monologist is MONOLOGUE-IST.
--The interview portion of the show was confined to one segment which featured special guest star David Wain. David spoke into a whimsically oversized microphone about The Ten and how directing this full-length feature had been easier than the grueling production schedule of Stella.
--More photos and details are over at Jesse's blog.
Mike Daisey
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November 10, 2006
Reflecting on the Career and Influence of Robert Smigel at the Museum of Television and Radio
By: Jeffrey Bergstrom
Robert Smigel's appearance at the Museum of Television and Radio last night exceeded expectations; the level of revelation the discussion unleashed was incredible. The show was slated to begin at 6:30pm sharp, but due to heavy traffic, Mr. Smigel arrived 30 minutes late. To keep the natives from getting too restless, museum coordinators decided to show an extensive comp reel of some of Robert's greatest hits. The reel was probably the best way to start the evening, as it revealed how Smigel is the brains behind SNL and Conan's most famous sketches and characters. It contained SNL bits such as Shatner at a Trekkie convention, Phil Hartman's portrayal as a bi-polar Ronald Reagan, the infamous Schmitt's Gay ad (the version with the Van Halen soundtrack, not aired on SNL), the Ambiguously Gay Duo, the Ex-Presidents, the Fun with Real Audio shorts, Adventures of Mr. T., Christmastime for the Jews, Smigel's more famous Conan and Triumph moments, and culminated with a viewing of the TV Funhouse pilot in its entirety.
After the clips, discussion moderator Kurt Anderson approached the podium to give opening remarks, however, he was savagely cut short by a heckler in the back of the auditorium. The heckler, it turned out, was none other than Triumph the Insult Comic Dog--a surprise to everyone in the house. The puppet eventually made his way--Smigel in tow--to the podium for an interview of his own.
Between the clips already shown and Triumph's unexpected appearance, the crowd was loosened up and ready for a discussion. To start, Mr. Smigel briefly presented a series of Republican campaign ads he made for SNL and discussed how decency is tackled there. According to Robert, Lorne Michaels has always been an advocate for his work and pushes a lot of his stuff through the censors and decency boards at NBC.
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November 9, 2006
Megan & Bridie: Friends Without Benefits @ UCBT - 11.8.6
Bridie, left; Megan, right
NOTES
--In New York City, where everyone is looking to fill the emptiness inside, a chance encounter in a Crunch locker room takes Megan Neuringer and Bridie Harrington to the brink of friendship and back in this one-act comprised of connected sketches.
--A fun game that kept popping up was about Bridie's forays into hot fitness trends. Megan first comes home to find Bridie crumping, another time she's practicing JiuJitsu-pilates in the living room, and at the end of the show, we learn Bridie is all about Jackin', aka Lumberjack-themed core strengthening.
--It's always a hoot to see girls committing to ladyparts humor & gross-out gags.
--The SOLD OUT crowd for this double bill with internet video icons Olde English had a noticeable YOUTH PRESENCE. Most of the YOUTH PRESENCE left after OE's set; those kids missed out on some great stuff.
--The shows were part of the ongoing UCBT: Best Comedy in the Universe Festival, which runs through November 18th. These were also audition showcases for HBO/Aspen.
Feel that positive rage!
The fourth wall is broken and realism is obliterated as a tampon--which the audience believes is in use--falls quietly to the floor
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 12:59 PM | Comments (2)
July 25, 2006
Growing Up is Tough @ The UCBT - 7.24.6
Neil Campbell and Paul Rust play sibling runaways on the edge of a tribulation as primal as the fire that burns at the feet of Laverne and Shirley--the teetering march towards adulthood knowing "nothing's gonna take us back now, straight ahead and on the track now." In Growing Up is Tough, an emboldened Paul looks around their first apartment and asserts with resolve, "We're gonna grow moustaches!"--big, thick, full, poofy, terrific, fierce moustaches--the ultimate signifier of masculinity, independence, and maturity. They're also gonna play the saxophone on their wicked fire escape and 69 girls in their bedrooms.
Exceptionally well structured and performed, the show lays down the growing up theme at the top and lets a series of slice-of-skewed-life sketches unwind in a way that tugs smartly back on threads in previous scenes. The more these characters supposedly grow, the closer they get to coming full circle to the pre-action stasis that begat the play's chain of events. Eventually Neil & Paul crawl back to their parents, albeit, they return to them with moustaches--suggesting a universal theme that's quite simply: The more we grow (moustaches), the more we stay the same.
Neil's perkiness complements Paul's naivete, resulting in the kind of charismatic effusion that's generally conjured by 5-month old puppies and tots with Spaghettio's on their faces. Growing Up is Tough is directed by UCB-LA's Owen Burke.
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WeirDass @ The Abingdon Theater - 7.24.6
By: Keith Huang
Master improvisers Stephnie Weir and Bob Dassie once again showed New York City how two-person improv is done. The acclaimed husband-and-wife duo, who reside in Los Angeles, entertained a full house Monday night at the Abingdon Theatre, dishing out the first of four nights of their unrivaled longform scenework.
Like a chemistry experiment, a typical WeirDass show comprises the simultaneous action with the spontaneous reaction -- the byproduct being gut laughter from the audience. However, what makes this improv so memorable is the honesty and vulnerability through which Weir and Dassie filter their characters' dialogue. By doing so, in one or two beats, they deliver the "so what" of each scene. They are true professionals, and their aggregate years of stagetime is apparent, especially when Weir delivers a line that drips with smarmy conceit: "The neighborhood is gated for a reason."
The hairpin turns and space-bending jumpcuts douse their fires with fuel, but Weir and Dassie also keep things simple, and more importantly genuine, which is why the audience can be heard to moan with sympathy as often as they guffaw. In October, Weir will star in ABC's Big Day. Tickets to other WeirDass performances this week are still available.
RELATED: More Photos
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July 20, 2006
UCB Theater in the Park @ Central Park SummerStage - 7.19.6
The Upright Citizens Brigade Theater presented an evening under the stars last night at Central Park's SummerStage.
Photo narrative below!
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July 18, 2006
Flight of the Conchords @ Mo Pitkins - 7.17.6
NOTES
--Comedian Kristen Schaal and televison executive Lisa Leingang were both SPOTTED at the performance. Kristen, incidentally, was also SPOTTED after the show in a commercial on television for Starburst fruit chews!
--Flight of The Conchords, "New Zealand's 4th greatest folk duo", played a loose 8 song set, which they referred to as "a rusty blast" because they haven't played out in a while. FOTC did not perform last year's breakout US single, Business Time. Scheduled performers Rhys Darby and Arj Barker were replaced with unscheduled performer, Aziz Ansari.
--Since there was a 10-year old kid in the crowd, it probably goes without saying that 10 year old kids probably DO NOT belong at a comedy show when Aziz is working blue. Get a babysitter, new age parents!
--One high-energy fan howled using a rather extreme volume, "I love you, Jemaine!!!!"
--What is FOTC doing here? Brett & Jemaine have another sold out show TONIGHT at Mo's, but they usually play bigger venues when they're here... so these sudden gigs have the feel and texture of STUBBLY BEARDS. Are they shooting something in NYC? Are they signing a huge deal?
--FOTC's Top 24 MySpace Friends include notables like Eddie Izzard, Eugene Mirman, and Demetri Martin.
--Here's a narrative recap of the show as told by one FOTC superfan.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:19 AM | Comments (0)
June 20, 2006
Sit Down Comedy with David Steinberg: Featuring Jon Stewart @ John Jay College - 6.16.6
The stage is set!
TV Land taped an episode of Sit Down Comedy with David Steinberg last Friday. It's conceptually the same as Inside the Actor's Studio, but for comedy. Or Inside Joke, but on television. FREE tickets were available at OCATV.com. The featured guest was Jon Stewart. They talked for about an hour and a half and did some Q&A to finish. Podcasts from previous shows are available here.
NOTES
--Jon Stewart's real last name is Leibowitz. (INTERNAL NOTE: Possibly Jewish?)
--When asked why comedy doesn't get the same treatment as the rest of the arts, Jon thought it's because it is too accessible--everybody thinks they can be funny. People look at famous comics as folks who just get lucky.
--The Daily Show does not write for its audience nor does it have any political agenda. The writers' only allegiance is to their visceral reactions.
--NOBODY LIKES YOU WHEN YOU'RE TWO: Stewart said he had kids; one is 2, the other is 4 months. The mention of the 4-month old elicited an "Awwwwww" from the crowd. The 2-year old got nothing.
--Stewart compared the shelf life of an episode of The Daily Show to a plate of Mexican food.
--David Steinberg has been on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson more than any other guest. He's kind of a big deal.
--Steinberg was once THREATENED WITH ASSASSINATION for telling a Richard Nixon joke. Stewart resigned that if Washington really thought TDS was a serious threat, actions would have been taken.
Steinberg and Stewart leave the stage. (Cameras were not permitted during the show)
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 4:22 PM | Comments (7)
June 9, 2006
SketchFest NYC - Opening Night @ The SoHo Playhouse - 6.8.6
SketchFest NYC opened last night at the SoHo Playhouse. The Apiary set up camp and settled in for 5 hours of continuous sketch comedy. Below are some photos and some thoughts on the performances that stood out the most. The festival continues tonight and tomorrow.
The Cody Rivers Show
The Cody Rivers Show was out of this world--outstanding, absurdist, experimental theater that paddles above the surface of the sketch comedy genre. Their payoffs were rarely immediate and their long scenes often pushed past the limits of comfort, edging the audience not towards boredom, but a point of full-on entrancement. One piece set to a pulsating and darkened rhythm akin to the manic dystopia of Edvard Grieg's "In the Hall of the Mountain King," has the Cody Rivers duo playing Restaurant with two unsuspecting audience members in a setting that could have taken place on the surface of the moon, a research laboratory, Antarctica, or any number of other desolate locales. Trained dancers and stage performers Mike Mathieu & Andrew Connor would look at-home on or off Broadway. And if a rousing, emotional standing ovation is any indicator, a dedicated NYC run anywhere near Broadway should be something for them to consider.
All American Push-Up Party
If you had to pick only 5 people in the comedy underground who should be famous and loved the world over, Dusty Warren definitely gets a spot. Not gonna say who the other 4 are--but you know who you are. He makes you giggle just looking at him with his goofball charisma and comedic timing that's part Will Ferrell, part your little brother. He delivered several monologues and short works in the form of a bike cop, a doctor, a backwoods storyteller, a coach, a skilled juggler, and a kid retracing the glory of an epic food fight.
video via Keith Huang
Kurt & Kristen
What's great about Kurt Braunohler & Kristen Schaal is their ability to take a concept and go beyond what anyone would expect. Since each possesses a strong improv background, one wonders how many of their sketches were cultivated in an improv setting--one that's free of the natural circuit-breakers we have in place in our brains. Their comedy feels like an organic result of two fearless and kinetic minds that know how to play around with any scene and effortlessly smash through things like logic, boundaries, and convention. How else would someone be able to come up with this script:
Kurt: (clapping & stomping wildly) Kristen Schaal is a horse! Look at her now and a look at her go, Kristen Schaal is a horse! (Repeat 15 times while Kristen dances and frolics)End.
More photos from opening night of SketchFest NYC
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May 23, 2006
Elephant Larry @ The PIT - 5.20.6
Geoff Haggerty explores the psyche of Gargamel
NOTES
--This production featured more crossdressing than a full season of Kids In the Hall.
--Stefan Lawrence shines in the role of Unintelligible Party Girl.
--"The Sandwich" seemed to be an omnipresent force in Elephant Larry's latest offering. Are sandwiches the next great theme of comedy or are the EL dudes just hungry?
--One enticing sketch involved the character of Gargamel in the midst of a Smurf-induced postmodern breakdown. "Who am I really?," Gargamel wonders aloud, while cycling through the cloudy nostalgia of the cartoons of our youth.
--FREE Elephant Larry DVD samplers were available in the lobby before the performance.
--Elephant Larry has Memorial Day weekend off, but shows will resume every Saturday throughout the month of June at The PIT.
Alex Zalben relaxes with his favorite book and a cool drink.
Stefan and Jeff Solomon
Look, a walking sandwich!
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March 16, 2006
The Dave Hill Explosion @ The UCBT - 3.15.6
Martha Wainwright
NOTES
--If you listen closely, the laughs that Dave Hill gets when he performs are imbued with a "he's famous quality." It's subtle, but you can hear the giddy eagerness in the audience's guffaws.
--Unfortunately for the audience, rocker Moby addressed and mocked himself on every issue that we were silently judging him for, e.g. stealing other people's music and Teany brand Iced Tea. That's no fair.
--Moby playfully ripped apart the legs of the wooden chair he was sitting on, splitting the thing practically in half. Damn it, Moby. How will improvisers perform driving scenes if all their chairs are busted??
--Moby also announced he is teaming up with Jonathan Ames and hosting their own late night talkshow at Mo Pitkins sometime soon.
--Martha Wainwright sang a sweet little folksy number that ends with her raving "you're a bloody motherfu*king a*shole" over and over.
--Author David Rakoff was SPOTTED in the back of the theater.
--As if the night couldn't get any more packed with celebs, subway All Star, Little Michael Jackson, was on hand to do some signature-MJ dance moves and signature-LMJ one armed push-ups. The dude's a beast!
--Watch Little Michael Jackson in action on the subway platform from whence he came.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 12:38 PM | Comments (4)
March 10, 2006
THURSDAY @ Rififi - 3.9.6
NOTES
--You'd be hard pressed to find a comedy duo in NYC with more compelling chemistry than Nick Kroll & John Mulaney. Months ago, this site hailed John as a RISING COMIC, the dude simply keeps getting better and better. The two host the show in character as mutant 50-year old Upper West Siders.
--Sara Schaefer hinted at a new live show she's developing. It has something to do with music videos--a Beavis and Butthead for these modern times, perhaps?
--Ran into a spokesperson for the Hammerkatz offshoot, DERRICK, who alluded that there is INDUSTRY INTEREST surrounding the young trio.
--Jacqueline Novak has a lot of rape jokes.
--Soft-spoken stand up Mike Birbiglia coolly sat down on the stage steps and intimately addressed the audience in what came across as THE PRELUDE TO A NIGHT OF FIRESIDE LOVEMAKING.
--WEBMASTERS IN ATTENDANCE: Drink at Work, Decent Content, The Post Show, and The Brazilian Muse.
Nick Kroll turns red after an unplanned Celery Soda & Snausages Dog Treats spit-take.
Jacqueline Novak
Alex Blagg
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 1:08 PM | Comments (7)
February 21, 2006
The Walsh Brothers @ The PIT - 2.18.6
NOTES
--The Walsh Brothers really are brothers, not just soul brothers as stated in a recent interview.
--They have Boston accents.
--Today marked the first unholy union of the Earth's most dangerous comedy-show-adventure-society, The Apiary Odyssey Club. Drinks were had afterwards at the Triple Crown and believe it or not, it wasn't horribly awkward.
--The highlight of The Walsh Brothers set was a sketch that cast the brothers, one as a freak show barker with a neckbrace and the other as a daring escape artist named Escape-o. Escape-o performed astounding feats such as escaping from a laundry sack, his own clothing, and the embrace of a Random Audience Member.
Behold! The great Escape-o!
Escape-o can escape from anything, even formidable restraints!
Random Audience Member beholding the great Escape-o.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:34 AM | Comments (1)
February 3, 2006
Hot Sauce in 4th Floor Walk Up @ The UCBT - 2.1.06
Gil Ozeri and Ben Schwartz
NOTES
--Plot: Find out what happens when roommates Ben Schwartz and Adam Pally have their lives interrupted by Barry Potter, a magical Genie, a retarded bike messenger, and a shellshocked Billy Bass.
--The setup of the show mirrors that of a tv sitcom--30 minutes peering into two guys' living room while winsome characters make their grand entrances and exits.
--Cody Lambert and Angela Bower must be spinning in their graves for not getting a shout out during the performance.
--The Official Hot Sauce Website
--Hot Sauce's next show is on Friday, February 17th
"Greetings Muggles," exclaims Michael Martin who plays the upstairs neighbor, Barry Potter.
Jon Gabrus is packing a little something extra in his spandex biker shorts
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December 12, 2005
Yamaholiday @ Galapagos - 12.11.05
Becky Yamamoto screams when she discovers the star on her Christmas tree is missing.
Michael tells her that losing her Christmas star is not the end of the world. However, the star is a priceless family heirloom originally smuggled into the country by Becky's grandmother's butthole. Becky vows to put the star back where it rightfully belongs!
Meanwhile, this poor, crippled orphan stumbles into this hip, swanky Williamsburg bar.
And Michelle Collins sings an anthem about Hanukkah and showers the orphan with chocolate coins.
As it turns out, Baron Vaughn stole Becky's Christmas star to use on his Kwanzaa tree. That ain't cool!
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December 8, 2005
Farahnakian & Flynn @ The PIT - 12.7.05
By: Keith Huang
The premise is simple, really: Two men in crumpled suits perform "skitches and skatches" in the lobby of a Comfort Inn. In exchange for the space, they've been given some light housekeeping duties. The audience is informed that "We do have to maintain the pool while we're here."
It's Wednesday at 8 p.m. at the People's Improv Theater (The PIT), and Ali Farahnakian and Dion Flynn perform "Farahnakian and Flynn present 2005 AD," a 45-minute show that kicks the ever-living shit out of all that is good, proper and sacred. The show is part social commentary, part self-help seminar, and the rest... well, we're still not quite sure, but dammit if it wasn't funny as balls.
The reedy Flynn proclaims proudly, "We've decided to spend our lives and dedicate ourselves to a simple proposition. That proposition is: I'm gonna go UP in life as high as I can go!" The brawny, wide-eyed Ali Farahnakian interjects so quickly that he gasps, "And I'm gonna freefall!"
From the outset, these two comedy veterans ratchet up the discomfort by stripping down to their skivvies. "I'm taking off my Shirt of Defensiveness!" says Flynn; "I'm taking off my Fear Pants!" yells Farahnakian. And suddenly it's a blustery night in New York -- by the way, every show at the PIT on Wednesday night is free -- and here you sit, watching two grown, free-balling men, and you're silently hoping against that their junk doesn't come crashing through their boxer-short gates.
Oblivious to such concerns, Farahnakian and Flynn warm up the house -- and themselves. Flynn does calisthenics, his arms braced against the wall, his left leg sticking out while his right knee pushes forward and his droopy, black business socks hang desperately to his calves.
This two-man wrecking crew craft scenes that hinge on exchanges such as this (that provoke mumblings of discomfort from the patron seated behind me):
DION: "Look at the calendar on the refrigerator! What does it say? September the 10th, Monday, 2001. Does it ring a bell?"
ALI: "Holy shitballs! Is this thing really happening tomorrow?"
DION: "Oh, God willing!"
ALI: "Jeeze, Louise, this thing really creeped up on me!"
Here are some more memorable lines from the show:
Ali Farahnakian as therapist: "I want you to take that pipe, put that crack in it, take that butane lighter. I want you to almost feel that shaft of white smoke coursing through your body like a thousand orgasms ... get it so close ... see the flame bouncing off that white golf ball ... and all of the sudden that white shaft is inside you and it's like a thousand angels singing on the tip of your penis!"
Flynn as reformed subway busker: "I was, by a he-she, gravely raped. And come to you with caper baring proof of diseases in my mind and genitals, twisting both my heads beyond repair!"
Keith is a fan of the comedy and a regular contributor to Gelf Magazine. He most recently chatted with musician/beatbox improviser, Reggie Watts.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 3:04 PM | Comments (1)
December 7, 2005
Invite Them Up CD Release Party @ The Bowery Ball Room - 12.6.05
Notes:
--A pretty butterfly pinata stuffed with 200 dollars in CA$H was violently busted open and thrown at the crowd and there was absolutely no scuffling for the money.
--Jon Glaser had the best spot of the night and the best 6 foot party sandwich of the night too!
--Has every comedian dreamt of being a rock star? Most of the performers unveiled some kind of hidden musical talent. E.g. Todd Barry on the drums & Ed Helms in a country western band.
--A dude from Yo La Tengo provided the chops for a balls-out cover of A Matter of Trust.
--Eric Slovin strutted into the Bowery flanked by 3 sultry chicks AND Michael Ian Black.
--MIB had a 3 ft open space radius around him--the kind of space that is ONLY created when everyone else in the room collectively and silently goes, "OMG, there's a celebrity!"
--Eugene Mirman's older brother and his brother's friend flew in from Boston to see the show. They split a cab with us to the afterparty at Rififi! Eugene's brother's friend's dad used to run a real apiary!
--Andy Milonakis was SPOTTED at Rififi. He was talking about the finer points of drinking sake and was seen flicking people off.
--Read a full recap of the show at Fake Century
Look closely for Michael Ian Black
Friends Forever: Craig Baldo and Bizarro Craig Baldo
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:50 AM | Comments (7)
December 2, 2005
Showgirls: The Best Movie Ever Made Ever @ UCB - 12.1.05
Michael Musto plays a slimy producer who knows what he likes and likes what he sees.
"Her name is Nomi Malone..."
Notes
--The performance is a set up like a play reading of the Showgirls movie script spliced with an artist's forum between Jackie Clarke, an adjunct film professor at Queens Community College, and John Reynolds as Joe Eszterhas.
--Bobby Moynihan shines as Molly Abrams, a young black girl who loves fajitas.
--A wardrobe malfunction caused Jeff Hiller's hand to remain down the front of Lennon Parham's pants for a period of time that appeared both awkward and pleasurable.
--Who knew that Showgirls contained so many allegorical references to Jesus?
"Put it in your blogs!" growls the surly Joe Eszterhas
The next performance is December 15th.
Read the official blog of Nomi Malone
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:20 AM | Comments (1)
November 4, 2005
Betty & Joan: Free to Be Friends @ UCBT - 11.3.5
Joan looks on as Betty recovers from her massive headwound
From the program:
The 1970's were a marvelous time for music, politics, and film. But television? That was another story... Until two very special women came along and made beautiful music together, and it was far out. Of course I'm talking about Betty Maddox and Joan Stein's landmark children's show, Betty and Joan: Free to Be Friends. Free to Be Friends was cancelled instantly by small-minded male network executives based on the hundreds of strongly-worded recommendations from child psychiatrists they received five minutes into its one and only airing. Tonight, for the first time since its 1972 debut, you'll see this groundbreaking show in its glorious feel-good entirety.
NOTES
--Sue Galloway and Julie Klausner are hilarious. This is a really fun show with surprisingly exceptional set design. It has a Strangers With Candy sort of penchant for twisted one-liners and for its dark humour wrapped in a cheery outer layer.
--Despite playing a lesbian, Julie Klausner's Joan is the perfect comedic straight-man.
--The show was sold out due to Rufus Wainright making an appearance on The Dave Hill Explosion--the show on the second half of a double billing.
Shylock the Owl comes out of his hidey-hole to say Hello!
Free to Be Friends runs at the UCBT every Monday throughout the month of November.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 2:16 PM | Comments (43) | TrackBack (1)
October 31, 2005
No Posers @ Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre - 10.28.05
NOTES
--No Posers is all-improvised indie rock with Brian Huskey on guitar, John Gemberling on vocals, and Rob Corddry on the skins.
--Brian Huskey had a wife planted in the crowd, catcalling and hooting after every song. She later came on stage and rubbed herself all over the band members, and did some Rockettes' high kicks in Rob Corddry's wheelchair. She had sort of a Brian McCann vibe to her.
--The band turned the houselights up and jokingly asked whether a fictitious record label representative was in the crowd. Someone swept up by the suggestive nature of improv, who was also probably not a plant, declared quite adamantly that they all sucked. It was a bit of a downer. They didn't suck!
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:54 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)
October 21, 2005
826NYC Superhero Fashion Show @ Symphony Space - 10.20.5
Last night, 826NYC unveiled its new spring Superhero fashion collection. The evening featured an all star lineup of Ed Helms, Sam Bee, Rob Corddry, Amy Sedaris, and many more.
NOTES
--It was announced that 826NYC is opening a satellite branch in Williamsburg.
--Someone was outside with a sign waiting for Faith Popcorn.
--Samantha Bee is pregnant.
--During the event, they passed buckets around and collectively panhandled an additional $2,340.
HIGHLIGHTS
--Leo Allen as Captain Guess Your Weight and Eugene Mirman as Robin with a Y. They were planted in the audience and went onstage for a bit about which is a better superpower, Invisibility or Flight. They provided some much needed comic relief.
--John Hodgman telling a masturbating joke in an audience with a bunch of kids.
DIDN'T CARE FOR
--The UNHELPFUL SLAG working for 826 who refused to let The Apiary peruse a program guide, claiming they're in limited supply and only for the people buying the 75 dollar seats. Then 5 minutes later, she hands one to someone in the 25 dollar seats. She was also dismissive in putting The Apiary in touch with 826's press contact by pointing and saying, "He's backstage, probably." Thanks for the professionalism.
--The enormous screen set stage right that blocked the audience's view.
--Sarah Vowell ripped off John Hodgman's Mexican wrestling mask and declared, "We're not clowns. We're writers." Is she remotely aware that pulling off someone's Mexican wrestling mask is symbolically, the single most dishonorable thing one could do in all of professional wrestling? That, coupled with her disarming statement--to put it in wrestling terms--was THE MOST SHOCKING HEEL TURN IN RECENT MEMORY.
Rob Corddry wearing Kenneth Cole
RELATED
Stephanie Lessing Meets the Superheros
Fake Century with a full report
Awesome Backstage Photos from Michelle Lee
Continue reading "826NYC Superhero Fashion Show @ Symphony Space - 10.20.5"
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 1:10 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)
October 20, 2005
Naked Trampoline Hamlet @ Under St. Marks - 10.19.5
Andres Du Bouchet is sooooo...--how should one put this without sounding hyperbolic?--let's start over. ONCE IN A GENERATION COMES A HUMAN OF SUCH EBULLIENT INTENSITY, THAT WHEN THE TIME IS RIPE, THE DEAFENING HOWL EMITTED FROM HIS VOICE SHALL QUASH THE FOUNDATION UPON WHICH ALL FUTURE JUDGMENTS ARE MADE. UNSUSPECTING ELDERS WILL BE KNOCKED FROM THEIR GLASS TOWERS AND THE INCENSED, EMBOLDENED YOUTH OF THE NATION SHALL RALLY AROUND THE THOUGHTS AND BREATHS OF THIS ONE TOTALLY TALENTED DUDE.
For real tho--did anybody else see Andres' monologue show last night? He's doing some really stunning, quirky, unique, and imaginative work. The PIT just picked him up for a residency in November and mark these words, his boundless capability will soon enough cause him to appear in a column The Apiary calls, So Long, Irrelevant Day Job!
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:10 AM | Comments (5) | TrackBack (2)
October 19, 2005
Photos from The Strange Box of Dr. Oddbody @ The PIT - 10.15.5
Here are some pics from The Strange Box of Dr. Oddbody at The PIT last Saturday. It's improv mixed with horror and is running through the end of the Halloween season. The "Strange Box" in the title refers to a box containing audience suggestions of horror stories that have never been told. The terrifying Dr. Oddbody randomly chooses one during dramatic Tales From the Crypt-like interstitials and then his Rainbow Power Circle acolytes improvise the story. THIS SHOW WILL RESONATE WITH SUBSCRIBERS OF THE MAGAZINE, FANGORIA.
Their next gig is this Saturday night at The PIT.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:54 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)
October 17, 2005
Tokion's Creativity Now Conference featuring David Cross, Michael Showalter, David Wain, and Neal Brennan @ Cooper Union - 10.15.5
Over the weekend, Tokion hosted the 3rd Annual Creativity Now Conference at the nation's most elite school for the arts, Cooper Union. David Cross moderated a panel on comedy with Michael Showalter and David Wain of Stella/The State, and Dave Chappelle's writing partner, Neal Brennan. As representatives of the most celebrated sketch comedy in recent years, they were asked by the organizers to discuss the state of comedy writing at this moment in time.
NOTES
--The Stella guys said they are more open to working with a writer this season. Time to polish your resume!
--Cross mentioned that Chapelle's Show changed the model for sketch comedy, in that it was popular while it was on TV. In comparison, Mr. Show didn't find its following til it was off the air and according to Showalter, despite everyone's warmth towards Stella, the ratings are not particularly strong.
--What current shows do they love? All agreed on Wondershowzen and David Wain name-checked Andy Milonakis.
--Worst sketch comedy ever? Near unanimity once again with The Newz and She-TV.
--"Uh... Which role would you want to play most? A doctor or a cop?" asked a random geek from the audience. Peering deeper into the darkened lecture hall, it was no random geek on the mic. It was Eugene Mirman! The audience--most of which were oblivious to his true identity--giggled and groaned along as he fumbled with his banal question.
--David Cross took a final query from Mirman to end the discussion: "What percentage of your brain is safe to use when writing sketch comedy?"
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 12:04 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack (1)
October 10, 2005
A Night at The UCBT - 10.8.05
The Saturday shows at the UCBT were listed as part of the Underground Comedy Festival, so to escape the torrential downpour outside, we decided to make use of our festival passes and spend the evening in at the theatre. B&W photography by Brandi Ediss.
A.A.I.F.A.A.
For his solo show, Aziz is now doing a 30 minute straight set of roughly half new material/half old. Retired: Tommy Tallarico, M.I.A., and all wall punching stories (and corresponding foam props).
Mother: The Soundtrack
"One of UCB's signature shows, Mother uses your CD's and Ipods as inspiration, spinning your music collection into a wicked web of stupid-smart insanity." -- from the UCB site
Reuben Williams
The rain outside proved too much for the old leaky pipes at the theatre. Water from above flooded onto the stage and inspired some terrific puddle humor.
More photos of Aziz here.
More photos of Hammerkatz here.
More photos of Reuben Williams here.
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October 3, 2005
Mortified @ The Magnet Theatre - 9.30.05
Mortified invites readers to share their most compromising and angsty personal writings from their teenage years. Here are some photos from this past weekend's SOLD OUT show at the 74-seat Magnet Theatre.
Giulia Rozzi reads an excerpt from her 10th grade diary that rivals the frantic, dramatic intensity of "Out, out, damn spot!" in Shakespeare's Macbeth.
Shawn Hollenbach reinvents "Twas the Night Before Christmas"
Margot Leitman used to pray to God every night before she fell asleep to have Him tell TEEN ICON Kirk Cameron to telepathically send her acting tips and career success. Kirk Cameron answered those prayers and Margot landed a solo in The Wiz.
--SPOTTED - Writer and COMEDY/SEX ENTHUSIAST Rachel Kramer Bussell with her family.
--According to Giulia, the producer of Mortified, the show is looking for more readers. Contact her for more info. We all have embarrassingly awesome notes and diaries laying around somewhere.
Photos of the rest of the readers after the hump
Continue reading "Mortified @ The Magnet Theatre - 9.30.05"
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:03 AM | Comments (4) | TrackBack (0)
September 26, 2005
New York Musical Theatre Festival Photos
We caught a couple of the NYMF shows being produced at the UCBT last week. Baby Wants Candy was awesome-Awesome-AWESOME improv. They performed a musical based off the suggested title, "My Favorite Infection." BWC is playing through Thursday and is highly recommended for anyone who enjoys enjoyment.
Baby Wants Candy - 9.23.05
Photography by: Brandi Ediss (click for more photos)
The cast is pictured here singing the song "Lying in a Pool of My Own Vomit."
Dances With Pitchforks - 9.23.05
Photography by: Brandi Ediss (click for more photos)
John Flynn
Monica! The Musical! - 9.21.05
Frenchie Davis as Clinton's secretary, Betty Currie
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:57 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
September 20, 2005
Inside Joke with Al Franken & Tom Davis @ The UCBT - 9.19.05
Inside Joke is an intimate show in which industry luminaries share stories and anecdotes about their lives as professional comics to an audience consisting mostly of students of comedy. We had some serious camera issues last night, but imagine the two guys above, Al Franken and Tom Davis, a little bit older and on stage at the UCB.
NOTES
--Tom Davis traded his first Emmy for a Grateful Dead Gold Record. Al gave his to his Mom and Dad.
--Who influences a duo responsible for launching SNL? They cited oldtime radio hosts Bob & Ray. Here is an MP3
--Al declared that Jan Hooks played the best slut character ever on SNL, although they both agreed Amy Poehler does a good job now.
--Al talked about his original submissions packet sent over to Lorne--it was 14 pages long. Speaking as someone who would read submissions, he said the shorter it is, the better.
--The cause of Tom and Al's breakup was not discussed. But, wounds have since healed and one could tell that Tom Davis seemed genuinely excited to share the spotlight with a friend he's made so much history with.
--One of the neat things about these shows is that the guests will frequently name drop a whole world, (a scene, if you will), of undocumented people, places, and events. If anyone has any interest in writing about comedy history, Inside Joke is simply invaluable.
--Former SNL writer, Leo Allen was SPOTTED in the crowd.
RELATED
Insider photos from Inside Joke
Musings by: Fake Century, Dave, and Katie
The early items listed at this page could nearly fill in as an outline for what was fleshed out on stage.
For further reading on Franken & Davis, click HERE
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 10:49 AM | Comments (0)
September 12, 2005
Notes from The Primetime Kalan 9.9.5
Upon introduction at Friday's edition of the Midnight Kalan--a SLIGHTLY nerdy late night talk show hosted by Daily Show staffer, Elliott Kalan--a larger than life STEPHEN COLBERT steps into the spotlight, blowing dramatic kisses, bowing grandly--basking in the polite applause of the SOLD OUT crowd of the tiny Juvie Hall theatre.
ENTHRALLING NEWS REVEALED DURING HIS SEGMENT
--It's actually COL-BURT. Not COL-BARE.
--Stephen Colbert IS NOT related to 1930's cinema starlet Claudette Colbert.
--Stephen listens to Neutral Milk Hotel.
SPOTTED!
ENORMOUS CELEBRITIES paced out front of the theatre before showtime, like:
Late Night's Andy Blitz!
AND
Colbert's BFF4L/Strangers With Candy genius - PAUL DINELLO. We just happened to overhear him tell a fan he's working with Amy Sedaris to help finish her upcoming book and that he's flying to LA today for business! ...but what kind of business?
UNRELATED!
You might have noticed that the picture from the show is really poor. If anyone out there is good at photography AND would like to join The Apiary team AND would like to have his or her future live comedy expenses TAKEN CARE OF, please shoot an email to theapiary@gmail.com.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:36 AM | Comments (0)
August 22, 2005
Amidst Peals of Delight from Bloodthirsty Audience, Sara Schaefer Totally Fucks Up Copy Machine; Related: Sara Schaefer Presumed Dead
Last Friday at Sara Schaefer is Obsessed With You, the much hyped day of reckoning had come for an innocent copy machine. It dutifully reproduced documents for over two decades to the best of its ability, and this is how it ends. As humans, we live as if there will always be a tomorrow, but this copy machine has shown us that nothing is guaranteed in life because one day, the copy machine worked, and the next day, it never turned on again.
And so it was, the poor ditto machine was metaphorically taken to the pasture like a lame dog and literally shattered with a sledge hammer into a myriad of jagged pieces like a collectible plate. Sara held a story-telling contest to grant first strike to the machine--Giulia Rozzi won the rights with an office tale about opening mail.
In related news, this show marked the season finale of S.S.I.O.W.Y. and it ENDED WITH A BANG. Sara's character was critically wounded by a gunshot fired from a mustachioed man played by Dan McCoy. In a HILARIOUS DEATH SCENE, Sara clung to life and sputtered out ridiculous facts as her office mates pleaded with her to hold on. Quite a cliffhanger! The show resumes again in late September.
In reality news, it was revealed during the interview portion of the show that comic-actor Brian Huskey and Sara Schaefer are getting married in October. Not to each other though.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:46 AM | Comments (1)
August 15, 2005
The Swarm, Last Waltz Around Rage Mountain @ UCB - 8.13.05
--Due to the high demand for tix and the number of comedy uber-bigwigs callin' first dibs, by the time the general audience was let into the theatre, seating was practically restricted to the sides of the thrust stage.
--A SOLD OUT crowd, pumped by an extensive block of hits by the band Journey, roared as The Swarm exploded onto the stage.
--The suggestion for the first half of the show was "LA SUCKS." The folks seemed well equipped to work with it.
--The Swarm brilliantly pulled their shit together in the second half. Andy Secunda played a Superhero who has no powers but all of the attitude. Sean Conroy was his villainous archnemesis, The Talker. Read what others are saying.
--After the show, kegs were tapped and the beer was flowin'. Do these improv people ever stop partying? 4:30 AM and the place was still littered with revelers.
--While pouring a beer for Chris Kula, it was discovered that the creators of Improv Everywhere are ready to take their act TO THE NEXT LEVEL.
--Sean Conroy disclosed the best reason to move to LA: to get a regular paycheck!
--Speaking of moving to LA, did this show double as a clandestine pact making assembly for those toying with the notion? Some of the old-school gen of NY scenesters in attendance seemed PARTICULARLY interested in chatting up the LA folks.
--REVEALED! What does the DC in DC Pierson's name stand for? We asked; he revealed. However, memory becomes shaky after a few drinks. We'll get to the bottom of this mystery someday.
--SPOTTED! Slovin & Allen, Brett Gelman, Seth Morris, Todd Levin, Amanda Melson, Bob Powers, Andy Blitz, and many many more!
An EXCLUSIVE photo of food eaten by Andy Secunda. They don't use forks in LA!
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:32 AM | Comments (0)
August 4, 2005
Recap: Broin' Out @ UCB - 8.3.05
Stella's Michael Showalter sat down at The UCB with the boys of Broin' Out to spit some buzz on The Baxter. Joe Garden, Andrea Rosen, and Cracked Out also made appearances. The Apiary will talk about Cracked Out later today--but first, some quicknotes on the rest:
--The most hardcore Showalter fans--A LEGION OF TEENAGE GIRLS--lined up outside the theatre several hours before the sold out show.
--Showalter denounced internet message board critics who go online and say things like, "I FUCKING HATE STELLA." He called them Nazis and said that the dudes in Stella are simply nice guys being silly. Is that so wrong?? He'd be glad to know that this Google search produces 0 results.
--"Did you see Elizabeth Banks' breasts either on the internet or while filming Wet Hot American Summer," asked a TYPICAL Q&A GOOBER in the back row of the theatre to Showalter. Michael gave no comment.
--Joe Garden from The Onion delivered his stump speech about why the people should elect him to replace Conan at Late Night. Could the ones interviewing him be the candidates he is up against?
--Garden, who scribes The Onion's Jim Anchower, shed light on the paper's writing process. He called it a "trial by torture," revealing that the headlines are pitched about 2 and a half weeks before publication. Then the pieces are written and rewritten by the 6 member staff until the original joy is ripped out.
--Former Onion editor, Carol Kolb was in the audience.
--Andrea Rosen introduced the show's KNOCKOUT musical guest, Cracked Out
--SPOTTED!: Bloggers! Showalter turned out an impressive confab of power-bloggers: Central Village, The REAL Janelle, and Tale of Two Cities were all in attendance.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:04 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (1)
July 22, 2005
ASSSSCAT @ Central Park SummerStage Photos - 7.21.05
ASSSSCAT stormed the Central Park Summer Stage yesterday and lured in a massive coterie of giggly gawkers and throngs of ambling park enthusiasts. The assembly of superstar improvisers last night consisted of: Amy Poehler, Rachel Dratch, Rob Riggle, Paul Scheer, Rob Huebel, Horatio Sanz, Rob Corddry, Matt Besser, Ian Roberts, and Matt Walsh.
All of these people thought they were here to see OzzFest!
More ASSSSCAT @ Central Park photos from Flickr users:
SNLFreak5104
Dan Dickinson
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 9:27 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)
July 19, 2005
Inside Joke with Mike Myers - 7.18.05
Last night, Mike Myers was the guest on the purposefully unpublicized, Inside Joke--an Actor's Studio-esque monthly talk show at UCB in which a comedian talks comedy in front of an audience of comedians and adoring fans.
Seeing Myers in a setting as intimate as the UCBT space (with leaky pipes dripping on him), talking candidly about his life and career for nearly an hour and a half, was quite a spectacle.
Mark Twain warmed up the crowd with a rousing game of Password.
Highlights from the interview:
--What work is Mike most proud of? So I Married an Axe Murderer!
--Mike recounted a quote game he used to play with Rob Lowe at SNL called "Did Lorne Michaels Say It OR Could Lorne Michaels have said it?" Quote: "Nobody likes a movie with snow in it." Answer: Lorne Michaels said it.
--Myers discussed what it was like studying improv with Del Close, riding in a car with Dana Carvey, and Phil Hartman's ability to nail even the worst material. Myers also said that his favorite thing to do is to perform live but that it is hard to do so without sparking a media blitz. Myers says, "I've done everything I've ever wanted to do as a kid. Now, I want to do the things I've wanted to do as an adult."
--The timing of this show, so close to the Del Close Improv Marathon, causes one to speculate that Myers is itching to reconnect with his improv roots and the comedy scene. Could Myers be a surprise guest at the marathon?!
SPOTTED!: Amanda Melson, Kevin Janus, Ricky Van Veen, Bob Powers, DC Pierson, PSNBC's Lisa Leingang, and 150 other people! This sold out show was as full as one would imagine for a star of Myers' magnitude.
Mike Myers signing an autograph for a fan.
Dr. Evil Soundboard
Mike Myers' profile on IMDB
Metablog/Marablog
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 8:27 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack (1)
July 13, 2005
Shots from last night's Midnight Pajama Jam - 7/12/05
Pajama Jam host Jon Glaser (Pistons outfit, left) holding Scott Fellers, an octopus hand puppet. Jon Benjamin (right).
The Gayhunter (Eugene Mirman) chats about how he orginally went to school for Computer Science, but then a council of mystics instilled in him his true calling. Now he chases gays the way Buffy slays vampires.
Patrick Stubbins, a fake pupil from a class Andy Blitz fake teaches at the American Comedy Institute, reads from his dissertation on Andy and the definition of humor.
Raisin (Late Night senior writer, Brian McCann) sings a delightful crowdpleaser called Ritty Titty Pum Pum.
Midnight Pajama Jam interviews Yo La Tengo
Scott Fellers true identity is NOT a Beanie Baby named "Goochy"
Midnight Panini Jam
Mormon Pajama Jam
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 6:19 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
June 30, 2005
Opening Night with the Manhattan Comedy Collective
Last night was the official premiere of the Manhattan Comedy Collective at Juvie Hall. The evening was split into 3 Acts; members of the collective and featured guests performed 10 minute sets, one after another from 7 to 11.
Some of the highlights:
--A man with an ENORMOUS CAMERA was in the front row during the performances, crouching and gettin' the shots. When asked, "Are you with the press?" He replied, "I'm with the N.Y. Daily News. We're doing a story on alternative comedy."
--After a blistering improv rap set, Freestyle Love Supreme received a standing ovation. Beatbox whiz Chris Sullivan told The Apiary they're excited about the future--they have a TIGHT SLOT at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Also, FLS is doing a show TONIGHT at Ars Nova and you can see a nice write up about them in this week's NY edition of The Onion.
Haseena (left) of TaDa! Telegrams sings for Manhattan Comedy Collective artistic director, Stacy Mayer.
Freestyle Love Supreme
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 9:17 AM | Comments (0)
June 24, 2005
Recap: 2005 ECNY Awards
Photography by: Kelly
The Winners!
Best Sketch Comedy Group - The Wicked Wicked Hammerkatz
Best Female Standup Comedian - Heather Lawless
Best Male Standup Comedian - Aziz Ansari
Best Director - AJ Morales
Best Comedy Writer - Catie Lazarus
Best One Person Show - Swollen Head
Best Variety Show - The Rejection Show
Best Comedic Duo - Casey Wilson and June Raphael
Best Host - Jessi Klein & Nick Kroll
Best Short Comedic Film - I Am Drugs
Best Technician - Pat Baer
Best Improv Group - Big Black Car
Best Website - www.channel102.net
Best Flyer Design - Elephant Larry
Best Most Fucked Up Thing I Saw This Year - Bret Gelman's Sphincter
Best Venue - Juvie Hall
Best Musical Comedy Act - Jessica Delfino
The Losers!
Anyone who missed out on the ENDLESS OPEN BAR immediately after the intermission.
The Apiary feels like death today. The show started around 10 and went on for hours and hours. The night didn't end there, however. Free caffeinated beer and a room full of loopy people kept the party going in the theatre til well past 2:30AM.
The Apiary caught Michelle Collins on the red carpetless queue outside and shouted, "Who are you wearing?"
She replied, "A threadbare American Apparel V-Neck and Levi Twill 517s. I just came from a job interview that went POORLY. I'm also wearing H&M earrings that leave my earlobes black as night."
The Whitest Kids faced a narrow upset to Hammerkatz for the Best Sketch Group award. Unphased by this news, Timmy from the Whitest Kids told The Apiary, "I really like the ECNY Awards... but where the fuck are all the bitches?"
Paul Scheer asks the audience, "Have you ever seen a garden with just seeds, but no flowers?"
June Raphael live via satellite to claim the Best Duo award for her work in the long running, Rode Hard Put Away Wet.
The award for Best Most Wasted Presenters goes to... Andrea and Chelsea!
Heather Lawless thanks her presenters, Cracked Out, for "all that boner talk" and accepts her trophy for Best Female Stand Up.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 11:43 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (2)
June 2, 2005
Recap: Invite Them Up 6/1/05
Jordan Carlos of Best Week Ever and the upcoming Stella TV show @ Invite Them Up 6/1/05
One of the billionaires from College Humor made his stand up debut in an Invite them Up feature called 30 Seconds of Standup, in which a comedian gets 30 seconds to tell jokes. His closer? Something like "How do you curb cocaine use amongst hipsters? Start selling it at Urban Outfitters." You heard it here first, Urban Outfitters is NOT DECK!
The shocking Pleaser Twins video made its first uninterrupted premiere. Here's the setup: Craig Baldo and Bobby Tisdale race around the city pleasing people with acts of kindness. Lots of laughs, great production values! Cameos by Ed Helms, Paul Scheer, Chelsea Peretti, and MANY OTHERS.
Spotted! Despite none of them performing tonight, Todd Barry, Rob Huebel, & Victor Varnado were all seen after the show carousing with peeps and patrons.
It actually sort of says a lot that comedians who aren't on a bill come out. It means that a show is QUITE TOLERABLE and that the performers are WORTH SEEING.
During the afterparty in the Rififi lounge, a DJ appeared and spun some tunes and the mood was festive and jovial. Suddenly, a distinguished looking bike messenger type with thick framed glasses entered the bar and alcohol induced hysteria swept the scene.
"Holy Shit! It's Hank Azaria! Hank Azaria--from The Simpsons, Spamalot, and Herman's Head--just walked in the door! And he's talking to freakin' Rob Huebel!"
"That's not Hank Azaria, you idiot. I'll bet you a million dollars. I think it's Ted Raimi."
Some back and forth bickering occurs until finally someone has the sense to solicit the truth from Bobby Tisdale.
It was Seth Morris!
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 1:14 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)
May 18, 2005
Recap: Gothamist's Laughable Hype @ Tonic - 5/17/05
Photography by Brooklyn Vegan
First of all, one thing needs to be said: Aziz Ansari is a Fuckin' Badass.
The Gothamist comedy showcase DELIVERED the goods. Hosts Paul Scheer and Rob Huebel stole the show with ZANY moustachioed antics. A great bit on cell phone ringtones featuring Orinoco Flow and the Charles in Charge theme song sealed the deal for The Apiary. Breakout star Nick Kroll dropped a neat set in which a pre-recorded Nick Kroll thought aloud over a live and bumbling Nick Kroll. Another interesting note is that Aziz continues to build as a box-office draw. Immediately after he finished his routine, about 15 people cleared the room. The show was bookended by Chelsea Peretti and Jessi Klein respectively.
Gothamist publisher Jake Dobkin was sighted taking candid(?) photos of the healthy crowd. Central Village, Daily Refill, and Brooklyn Vegan were also spotted laughing/grinning in the back of the house area.
Stellar job by everyone. Props to Gothamist for organizing the show and getting people out to see live comedy.
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 1:41 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack (2)
May 17, 2005
Recap: Neil Hamburger and Pleaseeasaur @ Pianos 5/13/05 - 2nd Show
Stand up shows tend to be a lot like rock shows. They're notorious for never starting on time. Pianos had two Neil Hamburger sets in one night. The first (packed like tinned tuna), to start at 8, went on at 9. The second (with elbow room to spare) to go at 10:00PM, didn’t get moving until 11:30. For all intents and purposes though, Neil Hamburger is a rock star. He could have come out at 1AM, pooped on stage, and gone home. Fans would’ve still gone bananas.
Two white screens flanked the whole of the small stage. In the center was a glitzy silver curtain. The house lights dimmed down and a smoke machine began sputtering.
A dude comes out dressed in a mercury colored Martian space suit and WWE championship belt and begins singing a wacky, high energy, early Genesis-like prog-rock number about calling 1-800 NO PROB-LIMO if you ever need a limousine. WTF?
Imagine Weird Al, Atom and His Package, and a prelapsarian Carrot Top getting cooked together in a roadside meth lab. This is Pleaseeasaur.
The guy changes into increasingly hilarious costumes and belts out tunes ranging on such topics as white cargo vans, deadly cobras with sunglasses, working out all the time, and an island made of Beef. Beef had two songs about it, actually. While he performs, interacting images are projected on the screen behind him.
FYI: here were Pleaseeasaur’s 8 costume changes: Spacesuit > Bald Eagle tanktop and lycra pants > Mountain Yeti > a colonial Judge > Mullethead > Pizza Brothers > a baby on an old lady’s back > Glam Rocker.
It was all extraordinarily bizarre, unexpected, and very funny. Prop comedy at it's best. That sounds bad, doesn't it?
(intermission)
Neil Hamburger takes the stage. Look at this guy. Good grief. He is wearing a tuxedo and oversized eyeglasses. His hair is sopping wet and fashioned into a remarkable combover. He lamely clutches a glass of water and starts the show by couging into the microphone--exaggerated, gross, & phlegmy.
What do you call a senior citizen who can't refrain from showing her genitalia in public?
--Madonna
What's the difference between Courtney Love and the American Flag?
--It'd be wrong to urinate on the American Flag.
What's sticky and salty and splattered all over the coffin of Ronald Wilson Reagan?
--The tears of a nation.
Why did God send Terri Schiavo to hell?
--For committing the sin of sloth.
It's not so much the jokes that make Neil so good. It's in the delivery and his commitment to his character. The schtick is that he's a miserable hack comedian with cancer.
The crowd was eating out of his hand. Neil connected with the audience in a way that was both brilliant and electric. Never once did it feel like he was going through the motions or that we were just another stop on the tour. He absolutely killed.
Comments from the first Neil Hamburger set
The father of Pleaseeasaur
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 1:25 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (2)
May 4, 2005
Recap: Invite Them Up @ Pianos - 5/3/05
Seems like someone forgot to put The Apiary on the guestlist to the SOLD OUT Invite Them Up all-star recording showcase last night at Pianos on Ludlow St. Good news is we didn't have to wait for an hour and a half in the line wrapped around the block because all the plebes without tickets were treated to a live simulcast in the bar and upstairs lounge area. You wouldn't think there's something dreary and opressive about watching a show on a tv of a live show happening 10 feet away behind a glass door... but there is. However! Action occurred all around.
While Bobby Tisdale clucked and made silly noises, the other scheduled performers would drift out to the bar area awaiting for their turns to go on stage. Demetri Martin ambled about with a Fender guitar. David Cross was spotted signing an autograph for an adoring fan. It seemed like all the comics were especially upbeat and eager to mingle.
In THRILLING beverage consumption news:
Aziz Ansari drinks Guinness!
David Cross <3s Budweiser!
Eugene Mirman ingests Henessy!
The show kicked off with a set by Aziz and ended well after 11:00 with Eugene dj-ing a dance party.
Brooklyn Vegan has a few pics up and a lot more on the way.
Daily Refill laughs so hard she weeps!
Gothamist, by default, has a great time weeping too!
Posted by The Apiary in Show Recap at 1:21 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (4)
