Paul F. Tompkins

[ticstub]

paul f tompkins live at rebar in seattle may 14th and 15th tickets available through brownpapertickets.com great weekend to see pft on friday night and brian posehn on saturday at the crocodile.

[pg13]

Why is Paul F. Tompkins playing the ReBar?

Don't get me wrong...thrilled that Paul is playing Seattle. And no slight to the ReBar, I've had many wonderful experiences there (two words: Dina Martina!)--but it hasn't been a very kind venue for non-interactive stand-up comedy.

I remember everyone, myself included, thought ReBar would be the perfect place for PRoK to take their flagship "Laff*Hole" weekly...but it didn't work out. The vibe seemed off...and they couldn't get their previous audience--from Chop Suey & CHAC--to come down from the hill to the ReBar...and couldn't draw from other neighborhoods.

Posehn at the new Croc--that's a great combination of performer and venue. Tompkins at ReBar? I worry a bit about that.

Hopefully, the venerable establishment will be filled with Paul's fans who would come to see him wherever he was performing...and the choice of venue won't matter as much...

pg--But I'd rather see Paul in a small theater show (especially one that might have bathrooms that don't scare me quite as much)--seattle

[Goodspaceguy]

Personally I'm super excited for this. Even if it is a bit diveish it still seems like a small, intimate venue with some experience with comedy shows, so as long as the comedy is good (PFT!) and audience respects good comedy (300 PFT fans/150 per night guaranteed), I think it'll be a great show.!

[Monty]

I've always had fun at the ReBar, although I'd say it's a venue that appreciates bad comedy. Like the Brown Derby productions, which are consistently hilarious. But I'm excited about seeing PFT there. I look forward to fun!

[Paul F Tompkins]

Tickets are almost gone for this apparent catastrophe. Please help sell it out so we can all tell our grandchildren we saw this Hindenburg of a weekend.

[pg13]

Reservations regarding the choice of venue aside, I do hope to get home in time to catch one of these shows.

Loves me some PFT!

pg--This isn't a Hindenburg moment, Paul. This is more of a "Why is Orson Welles choosing to do a Gallo Wines ad?" sort of thing.--pendleton

[ronfunc]

Tickets are almost gone for this apparent catastrophe. Please help sell it out so we can all tell our grandchildren we saw this Hindenburg of a weekend.

We'd love you to come to Portland sometime. Perhaps Bridgetown next year if not sooner.

[ticstub]

hey pg-13 are you gonna make it?

[Paul F Tompkins]

We'd love you to come to Portland sometime. Perhaps Bridgetown next year if not sooner.

It'll most likely be Bridgetown, because this isn't looking good:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gi...4189481&ref=ss

[funkyrhino]

Loves me some PFT!

I love me some too. I was pissed off and a bit upset earlier but then I played some Paul F on my mp3 player and I wasn't mad anymore. I was laughing in the car and forgot all about the fact that the bank charged me 37.50 in over draft fees for a 1.91 cup of coffee.

[pg13]

hey pg-13 are you gonna make it?

Got in a couple of hours late.

pg--Plans are still afoot, however--seattle

UPDATE: Arrrgh. Plans got trampled underfoot.

[pg13]

So...for those of you who got to go...

HOW WAS IT?

pg--Jealous, certainly. Curious, though, too.--seattle

[Monty]

It was awesome. The seats were all full, so the non-bar side of Re-bar was packed, which was a good sign. And Mr. Tompkins was very funny. I can only speak to Saturday, but I loved hearing the introduction come from an offstage Dame Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber.

And then the show was hilarious. And I got a signed cd!

Well worth the money. And I kind of like the effect of there being no opening act. Just roll in and see 90-120 minutes of the headliner. Sweet.

[DanOlympia]

Yeah, I was pleasantly surprised by how much material he performed. I thought I would have to sit through 1-2 openers, and then hear about 45 minutes of PFT. He started right around 8, and I think the show didn't end until about 10.

The only complaint I had was that, sitting in the back, they had this weirdly loud generator or something, that obscured a fair chunk of what Paul said if his voice dipped a little. I went to get another drink about 30-45 minutes in and asked them if they could turn it off, not really expecting that anything could be done. But they were really cool about it and shut it down immediately, and I could hear everything again. So kudos to Re-bar, I'd definitely go again.

[theDrape]

Both shows were really good! My first time seeing Paul, and he definitely lived up to the expectations I had from two great albums and hilarious appearances on podcasts. Definitely worth it for me to go twice. I agree having no opener, aside from his own introductions from "Ice-T" and "Andrew Lloyd Webber," was a great touch.

I found the venue to be quite suitable for the event, aside from the poor 16 year old who started the facebook group but couldn't attend. I even feel like it could be a good venue for other shows, but perhaps that's a skewed view since it was packed wall to wall with PFT fans.

[pg13]

Just to be clear...the Re-Bar HAS hosted tons of cool shows of various types. I've loved the place since I moved to Seattle in '92.

It didn't work for Laff*Hole...and, as made obvious by my first post in this thread, I couldn't quite get my head around the idea of PFT being there. It didn't seem at first glance to be the venue I'd have associated with him performing here in Seattle.

I'm crushed to have missed it.

pg--And I'm not sure how I feel in the anti-opener sentiment here. As someone who enjoys one man shows (Eddie Izzard comes to mind) I'm not entirely opposed to the idea, but as also a comedian who wants to work with excellent comedians in front of excellent audiences...I hate the idea that this idea is seen as a negative in the minds of these audiences. Opening for others is how good comedians get to be great...how they get to be good enough to have others open for them.--seattle

PS--theDrape, did Paul do material that you were familiar with?

[Monty]

I understand what you're saying, but as an audience member, sometimes you just want to see the guy you want to see, you know?

[Bucky_Sinister]

Tickets are almost gone for this apparent catastrophe. Please help sell it out so we can all tell our grandchildren we saw this Hindenburg of a weekend.

I would like to nominate this for the post of the year. Snarky, self-promotional and simultaneously self-deprecating, from one of our favorite comedians, and hilarious. Everything an AST post should be.

[dan telfer]

I don't think there was really an anti-opener sentiment until you spun it as such, pg. People just liked what PFT did with his show. In one case, it was simply because of the limited time available, and having an opener could have severely cut into it. It sounds like a decent if not very good call was made, and this person just said they were glad they wouldn't be robbed of their headliner.

Eddie Izzard got his start in street theater. He didn't need the club system. One of my favorite comedy quotes is Steve Martin's "Be so good they can't ignore you." Surely that is more important than networking.

[pg13]

I don't think there was really an anti-opener sentiment until you spun it as such, pg.

Ummmm...

And I kind of like the effect of there being no opening act. Just roll in and see 90-120 minutes of the headliner. Sweet.

I thought I would have to sit through 1-2 openers, and then hear about 45 minutes of PFT.

I agree having no opener, aside from his own introductions from "Ice-T" and "Andrew Lloyd Webber," was a great touch.

Three reviews...three "we were happy there was no opening act" comments. I don't know how much "spin" I need to put on it.

I worry that it reflects (and perpetuates) the unfortunate feeling that is far too prevalent in Seattle comedy audiences, where they don't think that local comedy performers are worth paying attention to...a situation that was exacerbated over the past five years when more and more top club comics stopped playing the local clubs and started booking themselves on theater shows, where they would rarely work with local talent.

(I count myself lucky to have had the opportunity to work The Moore with Doug & Graham and Triple Door with Joan Rivers...and I know that PRoK has worked hard to earn the respect of the Seattle Theater Group to open up their own opportunities for their comics to be considered for these theater gigs.)

I've been fighting the good fight for the Seattle comedy scene for awhile, and this is a real problem here. Even at Bumbershoot, as of four years ago the local comedians no longer got the chance to perform on the same stage as the national comedians--no matter what their qualifications. (They are given their own, separate stage elsewhere on the festival grounds.)

I mean, definitely...nobody wants to suffer through a shitty, badly booked opener when they go to see one particular performer... We've all been there. And, certainly, not every show has to feel obligated for throwing a bone to the locals...

But, I think there's a difference between saying "it was awesome that we got a good long set from PFT" to "I'm glad there weren't any opening acts".

I mean, what if the opening act was something fantastic? Who would turn down more awesome comedy?

pg--Lately, even as I try to present my opinions as clearly and as qualified to other opinions as possible, I seem to be generating a lot of resistance. Is it because I sold my reputation out for a $5 bet? Is it because I just became too old to play with the cool kids? Seriously, I don't want to be the old man shaking my cane and yelling "Get Off My Lawn!"--seattle