live from Laff*Hole w/Dana Gould, Trace Beaulieu and TV's Frank

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I haven't been to a Laff*Hole in ages...but I couldn't miss this one!

Starts in 20 minutes...post-show review to come.

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So, just got back from the show. Decent turn-out for a cold Wednesday night, but there should have been more--it should have been jam packed...as it was an excellent line-up and a great time was had by all.

It had been a long time since I'd been to a Laff*Hole at Chop Suey. My own comedy career doesn't often allow me to see as much comedy as I'd like...and the economic realities being what they are, if I'm going to see a comedy show, I'm going to go to one of the many venues in the area that offers industry courtesy to working comedians--something that the producers of Laff*Hole stopped doing at some point in time. (It is, of course, a luxury afforded to someone working in a town with such an embarrassment of comedy riches on a regular basis...an indulgence that I'm grateful for...and I'm in no way bitter towards the Laff*Hole producers for making everyone pay what they believe their show is worth--that's their right...and their obligation.)

There have been plenty of Laff*Hole shows that I wish I'd seen (including Andy Kindler, Chip Pope, the Who Charted w/Sir Mix-a-Lot come to mind)--but I'm such a Dana Gould fan that this was one show that I simply couldn't miss...and would have paid anything for the opportunity. (The actual ticket ended up being just $10 plus a four dollar convenience fee.) Dana was THE performer that I looked to for inspiration when I started doing comedy--he is an excellent writer and a peerless performer...he does everything that a stand-up comedian has to do well. Voices, faces, act-outs, smart material that really expressed a truth about who he was at the times that he performed that material, as well as an act that changed when he changed...that remained vital, compelling and in the moment. Dana remains one of my strongest influences...and I've only had the chance to see him perform live once before--one year where we were both on the bill for the Bumbershoot festival here in Seattle. (Got to meet him backstage that year...and gushed like the fanboy that I am...)

Because I hadn't been to a Laff*Hole in so long, I wasn't sure what to expect of the rest of the show. When I was more active in the Seattle alt-scene, Laff*Hole was the flagship show of the scene...and you'd see mostly (if not all) local performers...many of them doing special material for that show--whether they were variations of their stand-up or some sketch-like efforts (rarely would it actually be a true "sketch" as much as it would be a knowing play on stand-up comedy forms.) Things, from what I have been told, have changed as the nature of the People's Republic of Komedy (the producers of the show) has changed--and now, instead of only presenting local performers, these shows are now anchored by the cream of alt-comedy...brought in for just the one show on the one night in this rock/hip hop/electronica venue.

It certainly worked to get me to buy a ticket to this show--to have one of my favorite performers topping the bill.

So, onto that show...

The venue looked very familiar to my days of having seen many of these shows in the past (for example, the same banner...now a bit more wrinkled...was stretched along the back curtain on the stage...the same t-shirts were being sold at the merch table...)...but there were far fewer folding chairs on the club's dance floor than there used to be. I grabbed one and sat with some friends. (Near me sat Dave & Angela, the owners of Laughs Comedy Spot, as well as Nancy Guppy from "Almost Live"...and throughout the room were various Seattle comedians.)

Also familiar was the way the show started--with the playing of the "Laff*Hole Theme"--a song written, produced and performed by John Sanders--a Seattle comedian/magician now based in Los Angeles. Sadly, the song must be on a dusty cd or was played as a corrupted file...as it suffered from some stutters and stops.

PRoK's last remaining founding member, Kevin Hyder, was tonight's MC. He's a fine MC--though, someone at the sound board should have realized how piercingly loud and shrill his voice was...and either brought the volume down or eq'd out some of the high end. More than a few people were seen plugging their ears at various points when he was addressing the stage. Kevin didn't do much time up front (but he did hand out a couple of cookies to a lucky few in the first row--which turned out to be the only element of non-traditional stand-up on the night)...and that turned out to be fine.

First up was Douglas Gale--co-host of the Delicious Mediocrity podcast and a recent participant in the 32nd Annual Seattle International Comedy Competition. The crucible of fire that is the Seattle International Comedy Competition has definitely sharpened Doug's act to a fine point. Everything he did seemed perfectly worded and well-delivered--and his set seemed to be over much too soon.

Kevin then hustled one of the night's special guests on stage to follow Doug--Frank Conniff (aka TV's Frank). Frank was in town because on Thursday night, they are putting "Plan 9 From Outer Space" on screen at the SIFF Cinema at the Uptown...with live commentary from Dana, Frank and the other special guest on tonight's show, Trace Beaulieu. Definitely a special treat to get to see the two best "Mads" from MST3K (though that doesn't diminish the efforts of J. Elvis or Mary Jo in anyway) in a non-MST3K/Cinematic Titanic setting.

Frank, though admitting that he really isn't a stand-up, fit right in to any alt-comedy expectations--a great bit about "Tweets From History" and he closed with a transcript of some conversations he's had with his younger self... It was, like Doug's set, a surprisingly short performance...but well-received, nevertheless.

Next up was Tristan Devin--someone who has risen to great prominence in the PRoKiverse in recent times. From all accounts, he's really been the lifeblood of the organization surviving and adapting. I've never seen him perform before...and what I saw was someone with some very good ideas...and that exciting raw, unrefined and yet unafraid performance style that has been the hallmark of the best PRoK-based performers. Was he perfect? No--he stumbled and got sidetracked...and his final bit was a bit of a dud. But he was funny...and he would have fit right in on any Laff*Hole from any era.

Next up was the second special guest...Trace Beaulieu. He made his connection with Cinematic Titanic more clear--and there were those in the audience who were definitely fans. Shame, then, that he chose to only read the shortest poem in his book of "Silly Rhymes for Belligerent Children." Again, I appreciate that stand-up is not what Trace does...but I was looking forward to anything he might want to do...I just hoped that he'd wanted to do more than he did.

The trappings of a traditional comedy show came more to the fore than I'd have expected, when the next performer was advertised as the night's "feature"--and that would be Cathy Sorbo. Cathy is true Seattle original--"alternative" isn't even the word..."new wave" might be more appropriate. She's been twisting the expectations of comedy audiences for years and years now...she's a bold performer who knows no boundaries...who has a theatrical presence and musical skills. (Currently, she also is known for being the announcer for the Rat City Rollergirls.) Cathy is all of those things...but she's also not to everyone's tastes. I've worked with her and I can say from experience that those who like Cathy LOVE Cathy...but those that don't like her tend to REALLY not like her.

...and that sort of happened tonight. There were a few people in the audience who were dying over her tales of untamed pubic hair, her looking forward to post-menopausal symptoms and her concerns about her daughter--but not everybody was getting on board...and, in fact, there were some rude comments heard in her set suggesting that she wrap it up and bring Dana on...(very rude, hipsters...very rude.)

Cathy ended her set with one of her legendary "Songs of Filth" (in this case, "I Saw Mommy Fisting Santa Claus") I like Cathy. I love that she holds nothing back. I also know that this room can be unforgiving...and that you have to hit them just right or it doesn't work.

And with that odd energy in the room, it was time for Dana Gould. Dana chose to start with a drawn out and very detailed story (of the Black Dahlia victim) that completely changed the room's energy...and the wicked twist at the end of that story drew everyone into the palm of his hands for the rest of the night.

He did material from his most recent CD/DVD...he did new material and tangents that I'm not familiar with...and he even managed to re-purpose a bit from Funhouse (a re-purposing that put the joke on those of us in the audience who enjoyed it...but he made it work.)

Dana must have done an hour--and it flew by... It was everything I knew it would be--very personal, very full of exquisite observational details and perfect image-creating word choices... It was bold, it was masterful...and damn, was it funny.

Not bad for a Wednesday night in Seattle.

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