Seattle Intl Comedy Competition 2008

[Heather Christianson]

Starts tomorrow - opening night at Laff Hole - doors at 8/comedy starts at 9

[badinia]

Very exciting!

[pg13]

29th Annual Seattle International Comedy Competition
Preliminary Week One--Night One
ReBar, Seattle--November 5, 2008
TOP 5 RESULTS

5) Toby Brown (Seattle)
4) Daniel Carroll (Seattle)
3) Fay Canale (Chicago)
2) Will Weldon (L.A. now, Canada originally)
1) Geoff Brousseau (Seattle


Thursday is Night Two and that takes place at Laughs Comedy Spot in Kirkland

16 Comics are competing for five open spots in the semi-finals...they have six shows to rack up big enough scores to move on... Well, after tonight, they only have five left.

Friday is Night Three...and that takes us all the way to the Knitting Factory in Spokane!

pg--not competing personally, I'm one of the producers--seattle

[pg13]

29th Annual Seattle International Comedy Competition
Preliminary Week One--Night Two
Laughs Comedy Spot, Kirkland--November 6, 2008
TOP 5 RESULTS

5) Murv Seymour (Tampa)
4) Morgan Preston (Bend, Oregon)
3) Richard Bain (Portland)
2) Alysia Wood (Bellevue, Washington)
1) Nate Jackson (Los Angeles)


Friday is Night Three and the competition heads all the way across Washington State to perform at the Knitting Factory in Spokane.

16 Comics are competing for five open spots in the semi-finals...two shows are down, four left to make their mark.

Saturday, Night Four, the competition comes home...to the legendary (and newly relocated) Comedy Underground in Seattle.

pg--tonight definitely shook up the standings a bit--seattle

[JesseCase]

thanks for the updates, peter. i've been trying to call everyone but they know my phone has the herp.

[pg13]

Speaking of updates...

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN...THE 2008 ROCKY MOUNTAIN LAUGH OFF WINNER: JESSE CASE!

pg--you're welcome--seattle

[pg13]

29th Annual Seattle International Comedy Competition
Preliminary Week One--Night Three
The Knitting Factory, Spokane--November 7, 2008
TOP 5 RESULTS

5) Tyler Hawkins (Edmonton, Alberta)
4) Morgan Preston (Bend, Oregon)
3) Murv Seymour (Tampa, Florida)
TIE--2) Nate Jackson (Los Angeles)
TIE--2) Kortney Shane Williams (Seattle)
1) Justin Rupple (Issaquah, Washington)

After a couple of shows in front of somewhat disappointingly small crowds, the performers in Preliminary Week One got the chance to show what they could do in front of a couple of hundred comedy fans in a very swanky, multi-level music venue...and they took advantage of the chance to really show off what they can do. The top spot tonight went to the one comedian in this week who plays an instrument in his act.

It should be pointed out that after three shows, 12 of the 16 competitors of this week have placed in the Top 5. We're half way through the week and everybody is very close, scoring-wise. These 16 competitors have 3 more shows to try to make their way into the Top 5 for the entire week...that gets them into the semi-finals.

Saturday is Night Four and the competition heads all the way BACK across Washington State to perform at the legendary Comedy Underground...now in its new location, two blocks away from the old location...still in Seattle's Pioneer Square.

Sunday, Night Five, we'll be headed north...to play the Fairhaven Martini Bar in Bellingham.

pg--A number of very talented and worthy people are going to find themselves on the outside looking in when it comes time to send the Top 5 from this week to the semi-finals...scratching and clawing all the way down.--seattle

[JesseCase]

the plot thickens...

[pg13]

Seattle International Comedy Competition
29th Annual Seattle International Comedy Competition
Preliminary Week One--Night Four
Comedy Underground, Seattle--November 8, 2008
TOP 5 RESULTS

5) Daniel Carroll (Seattle)
4) Tyler Hawkins (Edmonton, AB)
3) Kortney Shane Williams (Seattle)
2) Murv Seymour (Tampa)
1) Richard Bain (Portland)

A hot (if drunk) comedy crowd welcomed the competition back home--to the venerable institution that is Seattle's Comedy Underground. These performers played to the largest audience that the club has ever held--either here in the new venue that it has just moved into, or back in the old building. For many, the crowd was hot and loving what they were doing...for some, the crowd was drunk, chatty and hard to corral...

There are only two shows left in this first preliminary week...and the overall scores are VERY close. The battle between these 16 fine comedians for only 5 spots in the semi-finals will be intense on Sunday night at the Fairhaven Martini Bar in Bellingham, Washington...and then right back at the Comedy Underground in Seattle on Monday night for the last show of the week...which is "industry" night--where the judges are all muckymucks in the comedy industry who want to check the pulse of modern comedy.

Good luck to everyone...you're gonna need it!

pg--Ty Barnett dropped in and did a stall set tonight...always good to see Ty work!--seattle

[pg13]

Seattle International Comedy Competition
29th Annual Seattle International Comedy Competition
Preliminary Week One--Night Five
Fairhaven Martini Bar, Bellingham--November 9, 2008
TOP 5 RESULTS

5) Justin Rupple (Issaquah, WA)
4) Tyler Hawkins (Edmonton, AB)
3) Kortney Shane Williams (Seattle)
2) Nate Jackson (Seattle)
1) Morgan Preston (Bend, OR)

The Fairhaven has long been one of the first road rooms that any Seattle comic gets booked to do...and it has a mixed reputation. On one hand, people do come to see comedy--and tonight's show was pretty much full. On the other hand, they simply don't know how to behave at a comedy show--they sit in the first row and then have conversations all the way through the show, they shout out stupid things at every joke or rhetorical question as if they've been trained to do that, and what they REALLY want the show to be about is for the comedian to make fun of their friends...

It can be a difficult place in a competition when you really need a good score...and most competition veterans have developed an uneasy dread regarding the place.

Tonight, however...while the normal distractions were proudly on display as if they were worried they might lose their reputation if they didn't chat and shout and seem vaguely disappointed when comedians did their act rather than insult them, these distractions didn't stop this group of comedians from delivering one of the better competition shows at the Fairhaven--so said some of the judges and the door man.

The cruelty of math rears its head...and after tonight's show, we know that only 12 of the 16 comics in this week can possibly manage to make it into the top 5 for the week--and thus earn themselves a spot in the semi-finals. On the other hand, not only do 8 different comics have the mathematical chance of ending up the week in first place...but none of the current residents in the Top 5 are a lock to end up there...which makes the final show of this first preliminary week all the more pressure packed.

And, to top that off, this show is Industry Night--the judges are important people in the comedy industry and other industry types will be in the audience...so everyone will be trying to show these fine folks what they've got...while trying to grab the best scores they can...

Right now, the twelve comedians who have a mathematical chance to make the semi-finals (and their current placement for the week) are:

12) Chris Gordon
11) Will Weldon
10) Alysia Wood
9) Daniel Carroll
8) Tyler Hawkins
7) Richard Bain
6) Justin Rupple
5) Geoff Brousseau
4) Morgan Preston
3) Kortney Shane Williams
2) Murv Seymour
1) Nate Jackson

...and we'll know by this time tomorrow which five of those get to come back to compete in the semi-finals.

pg--Those of you in the Seattle area should come down to the Comedy Underground for this 8pm Monday show, to see who makes it in and who cracks under the pressure! That's ALWAYS fun!--seattle

[pg13]

Seattle International Comedy Competition
29th Annual Seattle International Comedy Competition
Preliminary Week One--Night Six
Comedy Underground (Industry Night), Seattle--November 10, 2008
TOP 5 RESULTS

Top 5 for the night

5) Will Weldon
4) Justin Rupple
3) Richard Bain
2) Nate Jackson
1) Tyler Hawkins

Mini-analysis--Going into this final night of competition for the sixteen competitors in Preliminary Week One of the 29th Annual Seattle International Comedy Competition, twelve of them were in mathematical contention to grab one of the five coveted top spots...the spots that welcome those performers into the semi-finals.

There was also the added pressure of this being "Industry Night"--where judges (and some audience members) had specific connections to the comedy industry...so, even those not in contention had cause to give it their best.

And I think they did...which, of course, made it very difficult for those who needed some people to have bad sets in order for them to move up...but, you never know until you see the judges’ scores.

Richard Bain had an amazing set...but so did Geoff Brousseau, Toby Brown and Alysia Wood, none of whom made the Top 5 for the night the way Richard did. Emmett Montgomery had one of his better sets of the week--as he seems to put things together on industry nights...and Daniel Carroll fought through what was a somewhat tight crowd to close very strong.

It was good to see Will Weldon get back into the top 5...and after a slow start in the competition, Tyler Hawkins comes along and gets his first win of the week.

As a matter of fact, this competition was so competitive that NO ONE repeated as the winner of a night. Night one was won by Geoff Brousseau. Night two was won by Nate Jackson. Night three was won by Justin Rupple. Night four was won by Richard Bain. Night five was won by Morgan Preston and night six was won by Tyler Hawkins.

How would the scores add up...and who would move on from this week?


RESULTS FOR THE WEEK: TOP 5 (MOVING ON TO THE SEMI-FINALS)

5) Murv Seymour
--Steady wins the race. Murv never won a single night, but he delivered solid sets every night of the week. He ended the week with the highest "drop score" (the lowest nightly score you received gets dropped--this is known as the "drop score".) Murv outscored his nearest competition by less than .5.

4) Justin Rupple
--Justin needed to score well tonight...and it wasn’t clear that 4th was going to cut it, to move him up as high as he needed to go--especially when Richard Bain, who also needed to make a move up into the top 5, took 3 in front of him tonight. However, Geoff Brousseau and Morgan Preston couldn’t maintain their hold of their place in the Top 5...and Rupple’s strong connection with audiences throughout the week, and the momentum he gained with a big win in Spokane, launched him into the Top 5.

3) Kortney Shane Williams
--Kortney’s another one who never won a night but kept racking up solid scores each night. His success is also noteworthy as he had the odd luck of randomly drawing the position of following the same performer for three straight nights--which had to be odd. None of this seemed to faze Kortney, and he’s on to the semi-finals.

2) Tyler Hawkins
--Tyler had a disastrous first night of the competition and he didn’t fare much better in night two, for that matter. Then, he reeled off a string of Top 5 finishes, including a big win on the last night, to move all the way up from 8th place going into this night into the penultimate spot.

1) Nate Jackson
--It is rare, in this competition, for ANYONE to earn themselves a time penalty--as the rules are very clear about how much time to do and the performers are given a very detailed courtesy light that warns them when they have two minutes before a penalty and one minute before a penalty. Somehow, Nate Jackson ended up earning himself FOUR time penalties in six nights...which is unprecedented. Also unprecedented...is the fact that his scores from the judges allowed him to ignore these time penalties, night after night...and his scores made him the top finisher for the week. His energetic style simply swept away audiences, like a flash flood...and penalties just didn’t seem to matter.


Richard Bain and Geoff Brousseau were basically tied for sixth...as their scores were tied to more than four decimal points, less than .5 points behind Murv in 5th place. Richard made a valiant charge at the end and fell just short. Geoff had maintained a place in the Top 5 since the first night, when he won the night at the ReBar...but couldn’t maintain his grip on it and wound up on the outside looking in.

Morgan Preston, who had been 4th going into the last night ended up 8th. Daniel Carroll and his two Top 5 finishes found up in 9th place. Will Weldon was 10th, Chris Gordon was 11th, Alysia Wood was 12th, Toby Brown was 13th, Fay Canale was 14th, Brady Matthews was 15th and our most beloved Emmett Montgomery, despite an excellent set on this last night, finished 16th...


Interesting to note: None of the people who made the Top 5 for the first night’s show at the ReBar ended up making the semi-finals. I guess the ReBar really IS about alternative comedy, huh?


Tomorrow...it all begins again...

The Comedy Underground welcomes the first night of Preliminary Week Two with a show at 8pm. Sixteen DIFFERENT comedians--including Drew Barth, Blaine Reeder, Andy Wood, Rylee Newton, Jake Dill, Seth Perry, Tommy Savitt, Chris White, Jon Lincoln, Todd Johnson, Susan Jones, Todd Lynn, Jay Harris, Rich Ornelas and Lars Callieou--begin THEIR six nights of intense comedic battle. Their path takes them to Hoquiam, Longview, Bellingham, Kirkland, and the Intiman Playhouse.

And yes, I’ll keep everyone updated on the results from THOSE shows as well.

pg--seattle

[pg13]

Seattle International Comedy Competition
29th Annual Seattle International Comedy Competition
Preliminary Week Two--Night One
Comedy Underground (Industry Night), Seattle--November 11, 2008
TOP 5 RESULTS

5) Drew Barth (Seattle)
4) Susan Jones (Seattle)
3) Lars Callieou (Edmonton, AB)
2) Tommy Savitt (Los Angeles)
1) Todd Johnson (Boise)

Mini-Analysis--Back to back nights at the home club of the competition brings 15 new comedians into battle for the first time. (It was supposed to be 16 but one competitor could not compete for personal reasons and an alternate could not be secured in time...so, this week will run with 15.)

The first night of the week is a bit of a feeling out process--as many of the performers have never seen each other and they don't know where they and their act fits in the pecking order. Adding to the pressure is the fact that the second preliminary week STARTS with industry night.

I won't go into too much detail--but I think the industry judges missed the boat when it came to Rylee Newton, who had an amazing set...one that absolutely floored all of her peers both in the competition and those simple watching the show. Her style, her approach and her material seemed destined not only to put her in the top five for the night, but possibly win it. The industry judges, however, didn't seem to agree.

Well, that's part of the competition process...sometimes you don't get what you think you deserve and sometimes you get luckier than you have any right to be...the hope is that over the course of the week, these things tend to average out.

Also having good sets but just missing the top 5 were Seattle's Blaine Reeder, Washington DC's Chris White (who took the bullet tonight) and Vancouver BC's Seth Perry.

Wednesday night, the competition heads towards the ocean for a show at the charmingly named "Stiffy's" in Hoquiam. This show is sold out...all 60 seats of this road comedy palace. There won't even be room for the comics to hang out and watch the show--Week One competitor Morgan Preston is being kind enough to roll up in his 5th wheel and let the comics hang out in there during the show.

Yes...this is the yummy part of show biz, kids!

(Thursday we're back at Laughs in Kirkland...Friday we've got a special show at the Intiman Playhouse in Seattle)

pg--seattle

[KevinLee]

Here are a few dudes that PG said did good but didnt make the cut:

Seth Perry
[youtube]QCCn_cZtapw[/youtube]

Chris White
[youtube]9Lb6nVjHcb8[/youtube]

[pg13]

Here are a few dudes that PG said did good but didnt make the cut:

Well, it's not like they're out...they've just got to step up their scores over the next five shows.

It's far too early to say how anyone might do...remember that in the FIRST preliminary week, NO ONE who placed in the Top 5 for the first night made it into the Top 5 for the week.

Anything can happen...and probably will...

pg--I mean, our next show is in a bar called Stiffy's. Seriously.--seattle

[pg13]

Seattle International Comedy Competition
29th Annual Seattle International Comedy Competition
Preliminary Week Two--Night Two
Stiffy's, Hoquiam--November 12, 2008
TOP 5 REVISED RESULTS

5) Susan Jones (Seattle)
4) Tommy Savitt (Los Angeles)
3) Spencer King (Salt Lake City)
2) Seth Perry (Vancouver, BC)
1) Todd Johnson (Boise)

Mini-analysis: By the way...thank you for all of the emails and comments about how much some of you miss my full competition reports on the late and not-terribly-lamented SeattleComedy.net website... I wish I was doing them too...but this is what we've got and this is what we're working with...

Floods, landslides and a lack of toilet paper in the men's room could not keep the Seattle International Comedy Competition from making its appointed stop at Stiffy's in Hoquiam. The fine folks of Hoquiam braved ever-rising river water and the lack of a $1-million RiteAid stop them from packing this little pub & grub that could...and they couldn't have been a better comedy audience.

Sometimes, somethings just work out far better than you could have ever imagined--and this was one of those times. Thanks to Morgan Preston for the use of his 5th wheel trailer for the comedians' green room and production office (as the bar, itself, was far too small to offer such amenities). Thanks to Anastasia, Sativa and everyone at Stiffy's who made us good food, stiff drinks and gave us a place to play.

Everyone had good sets...and the judges were generally good to everyone...but once again, Todd Johnson's scores were heads and shoulders about everyone else as he's acting more like NASCAR'S Jimmie Johnson in his total dominance.

Seth Perry left the good people of Hoquiam with PLENTY to discuss (and a few things to try...) Susan Jones enjoyed her second straight Top 5 finish, as did Tommy Savitt...while Spencer King definitely seemed to find himself at home in this fun little road room.

Also having good sets but not placing tonight were Lars Callieou, Drew Barth, Blaine "Hard Luck" Reeder and Boston's Jon Lincoln.

Next up for the competition...we give THIS week's fifteen comedians THEIR shot at Laughs Comedy Spot in Kirkland (the night before that club hosts Doug Benson and Graham Elwood, by the way...)

pg--Although we performed along the banks of the muddy Wishkah, it was actually the Satsop that was cresting after threatening the area where Stiffy's is located.--seattle

[pg13]

Seattle International Comedy Competition
29th Annual Seattle International Comedy Competition
Preliminary Week Two--Night Three
Laughs Comedy Spot--November 13, 2008
TOP 5 RESULTS

5) Andy "AST's own EMBIGGEN!!!" Wood (Portland)
4) Jon Lincoln (Boston)
3) Todd Johnson (Preston, not Boise, Idaho)
2) Tommy Savitt (Los Angeles)
1) Seth Perry (Vancouver BC)


Mini-analysis: One had to wonder going into this night whether the dedicated comedy fans from the Eastside of Seattle would be saving up their laughter for a weekend with Doug Benson at Laughs Comedy Spot in Kirkland...but luckily it seems this comedy fertile land is filled with people willing to spend a little laughter tonight without having to worry about not having enough left for Doug...as we had a fine turnout for a wonderful presentation of the Seattle International Comedy Competition.

Third night of the second preliminary week...and people are starting to realize that they've got to put up some scores to secure their place in the Top 5 for the week. First couple of nights, you're just feeling everybody out and seeing what material you might want to do...but NOW, on the third night, you've got to bring it.

Well, some, indeed, brought it...and others thought they brought it only to show up at the end and find out that they may have lost it somewhere on the way because it was clear that it hadn't been brought.

Of course, any comedy competition that is judged by humans is going to be unfair--and I think every comedian knows that...but it is still hard to see that your finest efforts can be appreciated by two of three judges only to get blindsided and sandbagged by a third judge who just didn't like the cut of your jib. That happened to more than a few people on this night...and that makes me sad, because you want those who do good work to be rewarded for what they do...and you don't want anyone to feel frustrated when those rewards are not only snatched away but they get punched in the gut for trying...

Vancouver BC's Seth Perry took his energetic style and video game porn re-enactments all the way to the top spot tonight...pushing the top placer from the first two nights, Todd Johnson, down to third on THIS night. Tommy Savitt snuck between them to grab the second spot with another rock solid performance. Jon Lincoln (or should I say Joe Lincoln, as our guest host--"My Name Is Earl"'s Josh Wolf--a wonderful and funny guy, himself--called him in his intro...which might just be his lucky charm from now on, if Jon/Joe is a superstitious fella...and being that he's a Red Sox fan from Boston, he probably is...) cracked the top five for the first time this week...as did the one, the only EMBIGGEN...Portland's Andy Wood.

More props to Andy...he made the Top 5 from out of the bullet spot--as he was the first competing comic to go up tonight--which is always a hard place to get good scores from. Good for him!

Narrowly missing tonight's top 5 were: Susan Jones, Spencer King, Blaine Reeder, Drew Barth and Rylee Newton.

Our next show is at the prestigious Intiman Playhouse at the Seattle Center. If you're in the Seattle area and have tickets to see Doug Benson on Saturday night, perhaps you'd like to spend your FRIDAY night with the Seattle International Comedy Competition at the Intiman? I can probably get you a deal on tickets if you're interest.

Three more shows. Three more chances to get good scores. Three more nights before we know which five of these fifteen fine comedians get to move on to the semi-finals.

Three more nights before a single night off where I might actually get a good night's sleep!

pg--Like Loverboy, I'm "Lovin' Every Minute Of It"...but I AM getting tired.--seattle

[pg13]

Seattle International Comedy Competition
29th Annual Seattle International Comedy Competition
Preliminary Week Two--Night Four
Intiman Playhouse, Seattle--November 14, 2008
TOP 5 RESULTS

5) Lars Callieou (Edmonton)
4) Seth Perry (Vancouver BC)
3) Rylee Newton (Portland)
2) Todd Johnson (Preston, not Boise, Idaho)
1) Drew Barth (Seattle)

Mini-analysis: There are very few things in life that will allow me to justify not going to see Doug Benson when he comes to town (and he IS in Seattle--well, Kirkland, really--this weekend...and definitely, go see him if you're able to...)--death, being frozen in Carbonite and transported by a bounty hunter for a substantial reward, or my own comedic efforts.

This month, as you know, I'm helping to produce the 29th Annual Seattle International Comedy Competition...and that left me a few frustrating miles away from Doug and his show--but, as wonderful as Laughs Comedy Spot in Kirkland is...I was somewhere wonderful as well...as this night of the competition was being held at the prestigious Intiman Playhouse on the Seattle Central grounds.

This is a beautiful 450 seat theater where some of the best regional theater in the world is produced...

I saw a production of "Our Town" here.
I saw a production of "Our Town" with Tom Skerritt in it here.
I saw a production of "Our Town" with Tom Skerritt in it...when Tom Skerritt forgot some of his lines...here.

Ooooooh, that was a great night's entertainment...as a fellow performer, someone so far advanced in their careers compared to me with mine...to see someone who should be far beyond forgetting lines...forget his lines...is INCREDIBLY ENTERTAINING.

And the weird part was...instead of just ad libbing based on the scene...he started inserting dialog from his movies...

He'd go "Maverick, this is Viper. You do NOT have permission to buzz the tower!"

And, "Ohhh, Ivy...this is wrong...I'm a married man and you're the same age as my daughter..."

And, of course, "Game over, man! Game over!!!"

--Which is weird of course, because that last one wasn't even HIS line...and it was from "Aliens", the sequel to "Alien" which is the movie that Tom Skerritt was in...

Thank you, thank you...as I wasn't performing tonight, I wasn't in position to tell that little joke on the Intiman stage...which is the only place that it might get a laugh. Now I've shared it with you, laughs or no, I feel better.

Speaking of feeling better...so were most of the 15 comics in this week after this show! The crowd was hot and responsive...the judges were hot (although their attractiveness did NOT in any way impact their scores) and they LOVED the comedy they were presented with...

This means there was less space between the positions and almost every comedian got a good score to add to their collection for the week.

Rejoice, rejoice...fans of Rylee Newton. After absolutely KILLING the other comics and the staff of the competition all week, she FINALLY got judges who agreed with how we were seeing her performances--and she made the Top 5 for tonight...and she received the loudest cheers of the night for another excellent set.

Also, rejoice for the local kid...Drew Barth...who reclaims a spot in the Top 5--the TOPPY-TOP of the list. One judge even gave Drew a perfect score--and, honestly, it was hard to find fault with what he did on that stage tonight.

Lars, Seth and Todd are familiar faces in the Top 5. Usually they're joined by Tommy Savitt, but Tommy fell just short tonight...he took 6th. Spencer King actually tied Tommy Savitt to share 6th place while Chris White bounced back from a unexpectedly poor showing the night before to come in 8th tonight. Jon Lincoln once again found himself in 9th and Blaine Reeder took 10th.

Helping out the production were hosts Duane Goad and 103.7FM-The Mountain comedy tastemaker Marty Riemer...and then the crowd was treated to a bonus performance as we tabulated scores by former Competition champion Rod Long.

Two shows are left...and the math is about to get very cruel to some people, so it's going to need to be brung by everybody...and no, I don't think "brung" is really a word.

Next up...the Columbia Theater in Longview. This is as close as this week will come to Portland--so, maybe some of Rylee Newton and Andy Wood's hometown fans might consider making the trip to give some love to 'em!?!

The week finishes up at the Fairhaven in Bellingham (and that's as close as this group gets to Canada...so, maybe some Seth Perry or Lars Callieou fans will be there to support them?)

pg--Host Duane Goad told an "Our Town" joke in his set tonight...and that joke was FAR better than my Tom Skerritt joke. See...this competition DOES put the best people forward, after all!--seattle

[Lilly]

HOORAY for Rylee finally getting the recognition she deserves!!! BOO for Tommy not making the top 5 last night (oh well, he's definitely still in it)! And a big THANK YOU for keeping us up to date on the competition. This forum is awesome!

[pg13]

Seattle International Comedy Competition
29th Annual Seattle International Comedy Competition
Preliminary Week Two--Night Five
Columbia Theater, Longview--November 15, 2008
TOP 5 RESULTS

TIE 5) Jon Lincoln (Boston)
TIE 5) Seth Perry (Vancouver)
TIE 4) Rich Ornelas (Los Angeles)
TIE 4) Tommy Savitt (Los Angeles)
TIE 3) Drew Barth (Seattle)
TIE 3) Lars Callieou (Edmonton)
2) Spencer King (Orem, UT)
1) Todd Johnson (Preston "not Boise", ID)

Mini-analysis: If you concentrated on the positives, you'd know that this night we performed in a beautiful 1000 seat Vaudeville-era theater...in front of a great, nearly full crowd who loved the show and cheered loudly for everyone...and everyone rose to the occasion and delivered great sets...and the judges ended up scoring things very closely...so much so that four pairs of comedians were tied when scores were compiled...three of those pairs in the Top 5 alone!

If you didn't concentrate on the positives, you'd realize how bizarre the night was...from someone in the audience yelling something incoherent right at the start of one of the performers' sets...to the guy who was hanging around backstage that the theater staff thought was with the competition and we thought he was with the theater...but he simply walked on stage in the middle of the stall set while numbers were being tabulated, carrying a ladder...he interrupted the performer on stage, climbed the ladder and told an offensive, nonsensical "how many blanks does it take to change a lightbulb" joke... And then the Top 5 turned into a Top 8 with three tie scores...and, after all that, there was still no clear picture as to who would be making the Top 5 for the week...and there's only one more show to do!!!

It's almost sad that this train ride is headed into the station...as tonight, everybody rocked the mic...and this is really a great bunch of performers, it'll be odd not to see everybody...

The cruelty of math will send ten of these comedians home after Sunday night's show. Now, we know that only 9 of the 15 comics in this week can possibly manage to make it into the top 5 for the week and earn their way into the semi-finals. Making things even tougher is that two of the performers have locked their selves into that Top 5. So, there are 7 comedians battling for 3 spots...and the scores are astonishingly close right now.

...something that all of those ties didn't really help.

No matter what happens on Sunday, Todd Johnson will end the week in the top spot. Nothing anyone can do--as Todd's built up a lead big enough that no one can beat the lowest score he could possibly score.

And Seth Perry will make it through to the next round--although he could end up in 2nd, 3rd, 4th or 5th to do so. He simply can't be pushed lower than 5th.

The performers with a mathematical chance to move include:

9) Blaine Reeder
8) Susan Jones
7) Jon Lincoln
6) Spencer King
5) Lars Callieou
4) Tommy Savitt
3) Drew Barth

...and we'll know by this time tomorrow who will join Todd Johnson and Seth Perry from this week, plus Tyler Hawkins, Nate Jackson, Justin Rupple, Murv Seymour and Kortney Shane Williams from week one...as those who get to come back to compete in the semi-finals.

pg--Those of you who can should show up in Bellingham, at the Fairhaven Martini Bar, for Sunday night's fateful show...it should be a tense and wonderful time!--seattle

[pg13]

Seattle International Comedy Competition
29th Annual Seattle International Comedy Competition
Preliminary Week Two--Night Six
Fairhaven Martini Bar, Bellingham--November 16, 2008
TOP 5 RESULTS

Top 5 for the Night

5) Rylee Newton
4) Seth Perry
3) Lars Callieou
2) Drew Barth
1) Todd Johnson

Mini-analysis--Unlike the last night of the first preliminary week, where twelve of sixteen comics were still in contention and nobody was a lock, the competitors of Preliminary Week Two of the 29th Annual Seattle International Comedy Competition knew that certain things had already been decided, even before they got the chance to perform one last time...

They knew who would place first for the week. They knew that at least one other performer had guaranteed a spot in the Top 5 for the week. They knew that only seven of them were actually in contention for the three remaining spots. They also knew that everybody else was a potential time bomb--ready to blow the whole night up with what is known as a "snap set"...and that's the set you do when you don't care what the judges might think about you... You "snap" and kind of go crazy a little.

Snap sets can be some of the funniest things that anyone does in the competition, because unshackled by expectations, comedic instincts take over...and all of those risky topics that you'd chosen not to do suddenly burst into fruition (and it can drive you even more crazy as you wonder if maybe that's the set you should have been doing all along). Snap sets can also be horribly destructive--both to that show on that night (and especially the performer who has to follow you...dealing with a potentially poisoned audience) or to the competition (there have been some snap sets so bad that venues wonder if they should ever allow comedy to be performed there again...)

The first week, having everything to play for, didn't have any snap sets...would the second? And, if there are...how will that impact Blaine Reeder, Susan Jones, Jon Lincoln, Spencer King, Tommy Savitt, Lars Callieou and Drew Barth as they struggle to grab and hold one of those spots in the semi-finals?

The show, hosted by Duane Goad, started slowly...but the Fairhaven massive were on their best comedy lovin' behavior on this night--no major interruptions or incidents (and certainly no asshole with a ladder storming the stage)--and the show maintained a good momentum that benefited everyone who performed... It was a damn good show.

Rich Ornelas came as close to a snap set as anyone...but, really, it was mostly the same attitude and whipsmarts that Rich has shown all week--and the crowd seemed to enjoy it. When Rich ripped off his shirt at the end of his set, a trend was started...and Duane encouraged it. Soon, each performer seemed to be taking off their shirt (Jon, like Rich at the end...while Chris White came on stage with his shirt off.) Later on, Drew Barth took off his shoe...and Andy Wood showed the audiences his boxers...

It was good that this great batch of comics left in such festive spirits--because there was definitely pressure when it came to the scores. The Top 5 for the night, however, seemed to suggest that there would be no change to the status quo... However, props must go out to Rylee Newton for her second Top 5 nightly finish of the week...but also to Chris White, who road the shirtless momentum to a 6th place finish--just narrowly missing making his first (and long overdue) Top 5 of the week. Next time, Chris!

The hardluck kid on this night would have been Spencer King. Spencer went into the night in sixth place--just on the outside looking in on the Top 5, but certainly in position to make a move, if he had a good set and those ahead of him stumbled. He had to make up at least a half point--and not only did none of the other comics seem to stumble...but Spencer would be the last to go up on this night...and he'd have to follow the Todd Johnson heat...

...and then, just as Spencer was to be introduced...perhaps to ride the surge of audience enthusiasm that Todd Johnson had built up...the mic cord broke...and it took a few precious minutes to solve the technical problem. So much for the wave--and I think that messed with Spencer's confidence a bit. He scrambled to build something out of the wreckage--but it was clear that it wasn't the "push the guys in front of me out of the way and take their spot in the Top 5" kind of set that Spencer needed.


Because of this, it almost seemed anti-climactic to count up the scores for the week and announce who would move on to the semi-finals from this week...but, it had to be done, so it was done...


RESULTS FOR THE WEEK: TOP 5 (MOVING ON TO THE SEMI-FINALS)

5) Tommy Savitt
--Tommy went into this last night brimming with confidence--despite his not be assured of a spot in the finals. He was going up in the sweet 6th spot tonight...he's a veteran of these types of competitions, so he knew not to get overly excited or woried...and, he had earned himself a very high drop score going into tonight. He got to use that drop score as his score tonight ended up being his lowest--and even that was over 9.00. Tommy moves into the semi-finals where the longer set lengths will allow him to show off a little more of what he can do.

4) Lars Callieou
--Lars was the one with the most visible target on his back tonight. He went into this last night in 5th place. Tommy had a high drop score, Drew had higher scores over all...so, if anyone was going to push their way into the Top 5, they'd probably do so by pushing Lars out. So, when Lars came up tonight and rocked it just as hard as he had rocked it EVERY night this week...the game was pretty much over...and, sure enough, Lars remained in the Top 5 for the week.

3) Drew Barth
--Drew made a couple of adjustments after the third show of the week (Laughs in Kirkland) and never scored lower than 10.39 in the remaining shows. He actually had a week's worth of great shows, no matter when he went up in a night or whose heat he had to follow. Drew's making the Top 5 means that there will be two former Giggles Laff Off champions in the semi-finals (Justin Rupple being the other, he made it in from week one.) One wonders what Scott Black is doing next year.

2) Seth Perry
--Seth never compromised or wavered in his presentation of a rather adult-centric set each night...not even when his mother was in the audience, as she was tonight. Seth added a level of energy and physicality that no other comedian had this week...and he'll join Lars Callieou and Tyler Hawkins to mean that while there may be no women in the semi-finals, there'll be three Canadians.

1) Todd Johnson
--Todd Johnson is a machine. He reeled off four wins out of six shows this week...and his lowest score on any night was 9.96--an insanely high "drop" score for this competition. Todd, in doing a bit that he hadn't done previously this week, may have previewed how he'll make the adjustment from 5-7 minutes in the prelims to the 10-12 minutes of the semi-finals...and, if true, we're in for another week of hot shows.

Spencer King, then, obviously, did not make up the needed ground tonight to make the Top 5--but he did maintain the 6th position...which will sound better in a few weeks, I'm sure. Jon Lincoln, happy to have gone to an NFL game earlier in the day, seemed quite happy to end the week in 7th place. Blaine Reeder actually got his lowest score of the week tonight--in a set where he threw his carefully cultivated mainstream approach out the window and went back to the angry soothsayer style that he made a name for himself with in Seattle over the past four years--but still managed to move up to 8th place in the standings for the week.

Susan Jones started the week off with an unexpected Top 5 placement when she received better scores than she'd have guessed on the first night of the competition. Towards the end of the week, she kept getting surprised by not getting good scores for shows where she felt she'd done very well. Susan ends this week in 9th.

Rylee Newton finished 10th, her fellow Portlander finished directly behind her (always a good place to be if you're both naked and running, by the way) in 11th place. Chris White finished the week in 12th--but didn't seem as disappointed in that result than I'd have thought he would have been. Thirteenth went to Rich Ornelas--and I think we'll be seeing more of Rich over the next few years. Jake dill ended the week in 14th place and Jay Harris rounds out the field in 15th place.

So, that's it from week two! We send out our best wishes to the man who didn't make it--New York's Todd Lynn, who couldn't compete as he was in the hospital. We hope he gets better soon...in time for next year's competition, at least.


The competition takes a much needed day off on Monday...but on Tuesday, it all begins again...this time, it's the semi-finals!!! The sets are longer and the stakes are higher.

On Tuesday the 18th of November, the Semi-Finals Week of the Seattle International Comedy Competition for 2008 kicks off at the Edmonds Performing Arts Center. Then, we head to Puyallup, Kirkland, Bow, Rochester and Everett... The ten comedians who will be competing for more prize money and a spot in the Finals are: Drew Barth, Lars Callieou, Tyler Hawkins, Nate Jackson, Todd Johnson, Seth Perry, Justin Rupple, Tommy Savitt, Murv Seymour, Kortney Shane Williams.

And yes, for those of you still interested in any of this...I’ll keep everyone updated on the results from THOSE shows as well.

pg--seattle