Monthly Archive for May, 2011

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Greg Barris’s Heart of Darkness Residency Coming to Union Hall!

Published on May 2, 2011 5:00 pm

Heart of Darkness Residency

If there’s one show in the NYC comedy underworld that I’ve heard about and have always wanted to see (but never have), it’d have to be Greg Barris’s Heart of Darkness. For those of us who only vaguely know what to experience at a Heart of Darkness show, there is a really great article in the Village Voice that sums it up rather succinctly.

“It is an incorporative show,” explains the project’s charismatic creator, 28-year-old comedian Greg Barris, who will also take the stage. “The band and the comics will all be performing together, the audience will be involved, special guests will be involved—the whole way through. And people’s sins will be forgiven.”

I am pants-shittingly happy to report that Heart of Darkness will have a monthly residency at Union Hall that will occur on Friday May 20, Friday June 17, Saturday July 16, Saturday August 20, and Saturday September 10. The May 20 show is ON SALE NOW and will feature Kurt Braunohler, Dave Hill, futurist and filmmaker Jeremy Morris-Burke and some pretty special guests. Remember; it’s not a stand-up show, where you have a host bringing up comedian after comedian. It’s a collaboration where Greg, guests, and a band, The Forgiveness Choir, share the stage. The band has tunes of their own, tunes they have worked out in advance with the comedians, and tunes which are totally improvised when the need arises. Each performer becomes a part of the group sound when they join the band on stage. The 6-piece band backs each comedian up to add color to their stories with original music, thus making HoD one big, seamless, collaborative party that leaves the freedom for inspired instances of improv as the artists involved weave their work together. Greg has a strong focus on scientific and theoretical thinking regarding time, human consciousness, and things of that nature. He has also been meeting and talking to interesting people like Douglas Rushkoff and Alexandre Tannous who are preeminant figures in their respective fields and who you shouldn’t be surprised to find at these shows at some point. This show will not only make you laugh, it’ll also split your skull open, toss your brains against a wall, and put them back in.

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Wards of Merkin Returns! May 13, 2011

Published on May 2, 2011 3:13 pm

At 10:24am today, a message landed in my inbox entitled Wards of Merkin Come Back Show!!! May 13th (New Venue). This was exciting news, and I RSVPd immediately. Wards is a show hosted by comedic wunderkind Bobby Tisdale and besides being one of the greatest comedy gatherings in Brooklyn, it also happens to be home to one of my life’s most embarrassing moments; I was called up to give the ceremonial toast and completely blew it. I hate standing in front of a room full of people who I can’t see because of stage lighting and as hard as I tried to play it cool, I was shitting twinkies and the audience were subjected to a serious episode of awkwardness. ANYWHOOZLE, following a really long hiatus and a preceding scatter-shot show schedule, Wards is back! The show will take place on Friday May 13th at the Church of the Ascension, which is at 122 Kent in Greenpoint (see map below). Unfortunately, the show sold out in under an hour, but it wouldn’t hurt to throw your name in the hat anyway (see main image for instructions) just in case people bail. And, heck, maybe just show up and see if there’s room for you. It’s BYOB and some of the most fun you’ll ever have, guaranteed.
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Dave Attell, John Oliver, Greg Fitzsimmons and more Benefit Leukemia and Lymphoma Society

Published on May 1, 2011 5:23 pm

Atell, Oliver, Fitzsimmons

A few years ago there was a hot streak of comedy shows happening all over NYC benefitting the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. I don’t know if it was just en vogue at the time, but for a period of a year or two these types of shows were popping up all over the place. One example I clearly remember would be the one that happened on August, 28 2007 at The Cutting Room featuring Eugene Mirman, Leo Allen, Andy Blitz, Todd Barry, Tigers and Monkeys and, I think, Demetri Martin, John Mulaney, and Chelsea Peretti. The line-ups were always killer, and even for a benefit the door price was usually around a reasonable $20. I am sure these types of comedy-for-LLS events still happen all the time, but back then it seemed like they were always on my radar.

OK, so what’s my point? Well, there is a spectacular Leukemia and Lymphoma Society comedy benefit happening Tuesday May 10th, 2011 at 7:00pm at Caroline’s featuring comedy veterans Dave Attell, Jim Breuer, John Oliver, Greg Fitzsimmons, and many more. The $25 cost is not only much cheaper than most Caroline’s shows, but for a line-up like that it’s sort of a no brainer. I mean, it’s so freaking cheap to begin with AND it all goes to charity. Win Win. And speaking of winning, there will also be a raffle with some seriously insane prizes. Check out what you could win below; it’s worth buying a ticket just to have a chance to win some uber-expensive prizes. Phenomenal show for a really incredible cause. Get there! More details and a video after the whatever.
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Tom Shillue at PS 122, Citizen Radio At UCB, and More

Published on May 1, 2011 4:20 pm

(originally intended for BrooklynVegan. Sadly, a series of misconnections left it unpublished)

image c/o Joel Barhamand

One of the weirdest, still-gettin’-used-to-this events to happen to your man Klaus recently was the relocation of Ma Kinski and Pa Kinski from their sleepy home in Cape Cod to Midtown Manhattan so Pa Kinski could take a job that was apparently sweet enough for him to retire from retirement for. Although they’ve only been here a month, and although they are putting absolutely zero pressure on your man Klaus to keep them entertained, I find myself subconsciously trying to find something for them to do that is Klaus approved; basically so they can walk a mile in my shoes and see what I’ve been getting into since I moved here 11 years ago. The first experience I invited them to was Citizen Radio Live, hosted by the great Jamie Kilstein and Allison Kilkenny, at the UCB Theater on March 11. Pa Kinski is an omnivorous right-wing disciple of Glen Beck and Rush Limbaugh and Don Imus and many other people I wouldn’t mind seeing experience the breaking wheel, so I knew seeing a leftist politi-comedy show in the basement of a grocery store would be a great shock to his system. I also knew that he adores journalist Matt Taibbi and that his presence would ease the pain. The show featured Sarah Silverman, Taibbi, Regina Spektor, and Only Son. My parents (and I) absolutely LOVED the show (which you can watch in its entirety below), and it occurred to me that politics aside they are pretty ideal show-going companions. Awww.

So anyways I had been thinking about our next adventure and it occurred to me that the one show I had been dying to see, called Supernormal at PS 122, was still happening. I almost missed my opportunity to ever see it, but they (smartly) ended up extending the show so I was able to catch it last night, Ma Kinski and Pa Kinski in tow. Supernormal is a one man comedic tour-de-force featuring Klaus Kinski favorite Tom Shillue. Tom is a master storyteller, and the stories contained within the show have been workshopped over the past 10 years at spaces like Moonwork’s Evening of Original Works. As a matter of fact, a large part of my Shillue-mania is a result of my seeing him so many times at Moonwork. Shillue is from Massachusetts originally, as are the Kinski’s, so I knew this 90 minute show about Tom’s experiences in suburban Boston and NYC would be a hit. And a hit it was. I don’t use the term “literally” that often but hear me and hear me well; Supernormal is LITERALLY the funniest one man show I have ever seen. I have never laughed so much at a 90 minute comedy show in my life. His stories about his retarded uncle Bobby, an amazing wintertime retractable snot rope, Jack Palance, adventures at Emerson College (my alma mater) inventing the Vogue at Tunnel, and hiding from God inside a diner in NYC are just some of the topics covered that caused me to laugh so hard my glasses were falling off and my belt buckle kept coming undone. Proving to be perfect comedy companions again, my father was laughing so hard I thought we’d have to call an ambulance. It was riotous. People tend to find hilarious the things that they relate to, so as an ex-Masshole, Emersonian who watched Liz Walker on TV and went to Canobie Lake Park you might think I am biased. But you’re wrong. This show transcends upbringing, familiarity, and geography. There are only two shows left; tonight (April 8 at 10pm) and tomorrow (April 9 at 8pm) and I am urging you to see this show before it’s gone. I hope someday it will end up as an HBO special or something, but if you have even the slightest interest in laughing your ass off this is your chance!

Oh, and speaking of Moonwork, they used to put on their shows at the Phil Coltoff Center on Sullivan street, but have sadly lost that space. They are currently on the hunt for a new space that is equipped with / can accommodate a large crowd, a stage, and an area for beer service. From personal experience, Moonwork is a fantastic arena to see some of the best comics in the biz do their thing, while enjoying intoxicating beverages. If anyone has any leads in Manhattan, do visit the site and give them a shout. Thx. Luv ya!
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