Relocation…

Hi all, I thought since Comedy Monday Night recently relocated that I would too – there are many things about the MySpace blog pages that annoy me and it was suggested to me that wordpress.com might be a good place to write my blogs.  So here I am – and last night, I went out to Nelson’s Bar & Grill to see how the new location for Comedy Monday Night would work out.

The location itself is a good one – most of the comics had something to say – some good, some not so good, but I enjoy the reference one comic made to James being the Fireside Chat guy.  The facility is a good one – it is set up nicely and I’m sure once the crowd is “trained” it will be a fantastic room.  Here’s hoping there are many more funny nights at Nelson’s Bar & Grill.

On with the show – nerves got the better of a few people last night and the crowd was a tough one.  Something else kind of bugged me as well – a lot of people went over their time and the night dragged on.  By the time the headliner got up (and the headliner was hilarious!) there were not very many people left in the audience.  Speaking selfishly as an audience member, stick to your time, do your planned set and let the show flow as planned.  The show was almost 3 hours last night which is quite frankly a ridiculous amount of time. 

Amanda Perrin had the honour of going up first, but I don’t know if she saw it as an honour or not.  But her and her fanny pack did a very respectable job of getting the crowd warmed up.  Don’t even think about it, Amanda, your comedy was great, the bullet spot is always the hardest.  I like the way she changed up her joke about losing her virginity.  It would have been great to have more people down front – I think the energy of a comedy room starts at the front and works it way back.  Here’s a shot of Amanda with her fanny pack:

Next up was Scotty Collins.  Scotty’s material didn’t feel new or original and in some parts, over the top.  He was painfully uncomfortable on the stage, lost his place more than once and could seriously offend some people with what he considers to be funny.  When he asked James how much time he had left, James said “Anytime you’re ready” and that got the biggest laugh of the set (insert wince here).

Adam Risk took a risk last night by trying to interact with the audience.  There was not much of an audience, most who were there were either comics or people who are not typical comedy-goers, so his entire set consisted of him trying to ellicit a response from a fairly indifferent crowd.  He asked us why we thought people would have picked on him – he had a certain response in mind but unfortunately there were too many possible answers and nobody bit.  It was a very awkward set and ended even more awkward when he kept looking for the light – you don’t have to spend the entire allotted time on the stage – if you think you need to get off, just get off.

Derek Sweet had a great set last night – he started off with his bit about sibling rivalry which I’ve always enjoyed, and then moved on to a “somewhat” funny bit.  He finished off with a bit about his S&M girlfriend from California which I think would have gone over a lot better with a different audience, but I sure liked it!  I see a definite improvement in Derek’s material, the way he’s putting his sets together and his stage presence overall – he’s one to watch.

Tim Reynolds’ entire set was uncomfortable from the beginning to the end.  He stalled a lot, lost his place on more than one occasion and the only noise you could hear was the keys jangling on the gambling addicts’ belt loop as he walked by us to get more change for the machine.  He kept saying “And that’s all I could say” but then he kept talking – so obviously, that’s not all he could have said… I’m going to chalk this one up to stage nerves because the last time I saw Tim he was quite enjoyable – just not his night last night.

Katryna Chan started off with some jokes about her mom which were kind of cute.  Her bit about her 17 year old boyfriend being like a car sounded slightly reminiscent of Daryl Makk’s cougar/car bit.  But Katryna is contagious with The SARS – that little bit made me laugh.  I think Katryna was one of the worst offenders of going overtime last night – not that she wasn’t enjoyable, but it seemed like she was up for a lot longer than 5 or even 7 minutes.

Dan Guiry did a great job of getting the audience’s energy level up with his story about he sharfed his way to success.  Adam Risk heckled him throughout his entire set which was weird.  I enjoyed the new lyrics to Sex, Sex, Sex – just when I thought I was at the point where I could sing along, he goes and changes things up on me.  Well done, another fine performance Dan!

Robert Vautour shared some jokes that he wroten with us (his word, not mine).  I don’t necessarily get Robert but he’s funny to watch and funny to listen to.  He doesn’t always finish his thoughts either, so he’ll start one joke and then move on to another and you’re left wondering what the “h” just happened.  But he’s the only one who brought an audience with him last night so kudos for that!

Kaylen Porter’s friend, Karen O’Keefe, was the next to take the stage.  Karen’s set was short and sweet and she pulled out some of her classic material for the new audience.  It was great, and she finished really strong with her bit about the automated booty call.  I’ve only heard that once before and while the delivery wasn’t perfect, I think that is one of my new favourites.

A very loud Paul Kuster took to the stage next.  He kept shouting “Feist” into the microphone and I’m not exactly sure what that had to do with anything.  He read to us from The Calgary Sun whilst making fun of their journalistic abilities – it was humourous, but of course, it was more how he read it than the actual content of the material itself.  I do like when he talks about his personal experiences in the media – it comes across much more sincere and makes him all the more likeable.

Scott Dumas had the most to say about the new location and even got in a dig at me, comparing me to a referee that shows up at hockey practice and tells you how shitty your shot was.  But he turned to doing actual material and that is where he should leave his focus – when he’s telling stories, he’s really quite funny.  Even though he stalled near the end, he finished off his rescue story and got a lot of laughs.  I never would have associated the smell of burning hair with holocaust, but the way the story was told, you couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

I felt like Stephanie Foley overmentioned Dickens in her set – while most performers alluded to it, Steph actually kept saying “Dickens” over and over – wonder if it had anything to do with the 3 Dickens staff down in the front row.  They came out to support James and the crew last night, which I thought was a nice gesture.  Steph’s set was good – she had some new material and had some of her jokes fall flat with the audience.  She had to work hard for the laughs she did get but I did enjoy how she ended with her “Boys In The Bright White Sports Car” rap. 

An injured Daryl Makk came up to do a quick set.  Most of his material revolved around his recent accident, where a motorist hit him and knocked him off his motorcyle.  I wish Daryl a speedy recovery and I hope they get the bugger that hit him. 

Last up was BJ Woodbury.  I would love to be in a room and listen to a conversation between BJ, Stan Thompson and Richard Lett, as all three have very distinguishable voices.  BJ started off a bit slow, but once the remaining audience members woke up and started responding, his material and energy got better and better.  He went from one bit to the next and each one was funnier than the previous.  At one point, he even pulled out real tears when he was trying to demonstrate the different levels of intoxication – a very impressive feat for such a burly man.  I think my favourite joke of his though was how he got sick on liquer (Apricot Brandy to be precise).  I wish more people could have stuck it out, but alas, the show went very late and people have to work the next day.

However, you will have the chance to BJ again at Kits Bar on 16th Avenue for Daryl Makk’s Comedy Detour show this Wednesday night.  He is worth the $10 admission let me tell you!

When all is said and done, I am really happy that Comedy Monday Night didn’t miss a beat.  I just wish more people would have come out in support of the new room – get off yer keisters and make it out for the next show.  The staff is great and it looks like they will be great supporters of comedy. 

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