• People say comedy is hard and it really is (for evidence, please see my past few sets this week) but it’s nothing compared to all the moving pieces that make up community theater. This past Friday, I got to see a great example of a comedic play called “The Government Inspector” in Metuchen, NJ that pulled it off and made it look easy. The play is a Russian farce written in the 1830s and allegedly influenced “Waiting for Guffman.” This version was directed with aplomb by Catherine LaMoreaux (Anna E. Paone assisted) with modern punch ups alluding to our current administration. Most impressive to me though was the slapstick comedy on display. The energy and joy exuded onstage is typically reserved for professional shows and this felt like one. There were pratfalls, ensemble moves and jumps onstage. The show has ended its run but you should definitely check out Dragonfly’s one-act plays being put up in November.
• I was very kindly asked to open a really fun improv show at The PIT this last Sunday. I began with a bit of innocuous crowd work and discovered perhaps my greatest audience member yet. It was a guy who went to England this summer. He spent his last night there sleeping with three separate people in three different beds in a totally legal way. It was way more fun discovering this insane story with this person than just doing jokes. As for the improv show after my set, it was a GAS. Unfortunately, I only knew one person involved with the teams (the standup/improv do it all Lauren Davis who killed it) but I wish I knew more. The first team (My Brother’s Girlfriend) only had three players and got so much mileage out of their scenes. The best was about a Renaissance-era king that just wanted to hoop all the time. Lauren’s team (We’re Cousins) was just as great using a fact as their suggestion to get the show started. Their scenes were grounded (the best one was about a woman reconnecting with her mother she hadn’t seen in years and her husband barely participated) and made me remember just how much skill and prowess improv takes. Not only do you have to be funny at all times but you have to make sense and be on the same page. It’s an incredible talent and it was cool to see both of these teams make it look easy.
• Few shout outs to cool things people are doing that I’ve noticed this past week. First goes to Daniel J Perafan’s monthly show at the Creek Instatacular. I swung by on Saturday night and not only did it have a great turnout but the show was really damn good too. Perafan is a great host and it was fun to see him riff so effortlessly in between comics. Guy is a pro. Second shout out goes to my friend Clayton Russell Porter for his short story, “This Is Not Working” about pickup basketball. I’ve read three drafts and it keeps getting smarter, tighter and funnier. The dude is cornering the market on hoops humor. Props should also go out to Danny Vega’s “Am I The Asshole” corner of the internet. If you’re not following it already, it’s an amazing detour into modern social etiquette where anybody can chime in on anything. He’s created a little society and it’s a fun, always funny and educational way to spend your time on social media. Finally, props to my friend Talib Babb for showing up with a really hilarious piece on binging TV in the New Yorker. No need to spoil any jokes. The link is in the comments (if you still have New Yorker articles left to read this month, that is).
• Didn’t watch a ton of movies or TV this week but I have been slowly catching up with the latest season of “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee.” The Eddie Murphy episode felt like watching myself after having taken two weeks off stand up. He’s just a little rusty. Interesting to see him dip his toes back into the comedy world. The Matthew Broderick episode was great too. Really nice they didn’t let Broderick drive (very deep cut joke- you can Google it) but overall a really fun watch and cool to see behind the scenes at Citi Field and live your MLB fantasies if you’re a baseball fan. Finally, Amazon keeps recommending I watch the Dane Cook movie “Good Luck Chuck,” so I did in a moment of weakness this weekend. Man. Not here to rag on people but Jessica Alba delivered what I think was the worst performance I've ever seen in any movie. And I've seen Dane Cook in "Good Luck Chuck." Definitely skip this movie.
• I started working a bit with Gideon Klein and Stephanie Houng on their insanely ambitious company BonMo that connects comedians to projects that are tailored toward them. If you’re interested in being on the site, hit me up. I can help you out and maybe get you paid gigs. Doesn’t matter your skill level, experience, etc. Everyone fits a different project and we want as many people on the site as possible.
• Got a few things going on this coming week. Gonna bring my DSLR to a few things for a few people, gonna do a podcast, gonna do a show on Sunday, gonna do Comedy Fight Club with Boris Khaykin next Tuesday. Should be a good week.
Start your timers now because you can expect another one of these in approximately 168 hours
