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Posts Tagged With ‘ comedy ’

 

The Secretary

January 15th, 2020

“A story doesn’t have to be real to be true.” One of the opening lines of Kyle John Schmidt’s new play The Secretary could just as easily be flipped around to say, “A true story has many realities.” A dark and darkly funny new play at the Curious Theatre dives deep into the twisted and conflicting meanings of guns in America and how we all are related to the violence and power that they bestow upon us. The scenario is this: a small town, probably in the South or Midwest, based on the characters’ accents, is slowly dying from economic starvation. The only real moneymaker in town is... Read More

The Munthly Show!

January 1st, 2020

Puppets are like drugs: every culture has them, most people have tried them, and some of us have succumbed to non-salvageable addictions to their pleasures. I include myself in the ranks of that latter group. I find all kinds of live theater to be magical, but I especially love puppets. I find them enchanting; they’re just the right distance away, on the other side of the uncanny valley, where we trust them as humans (regardless of their corporeal form) AND they can do and say things that actual humans can’t. They embody the whimsy and fantasy of our imaginations, but are tangible in the present.... Read More

Dog-Friendly Comedy Shows!

December 12th, 2019

I don’t have a child, but I do have an obnoxious dog, which often seems equivalent to me, even though I can hear all you overstretched parents out there screaming into your computer screens that a dog is nothing at all like a child. I hold my line on this because, while I think that my dog is the most adorable entity in the universe, I recognize that other people do not find my dog even remotely appealing, and this seems like the same cognitive dissonance that parents of tiny humans must embrace. At any rate, I am always delighted to find places that I can bring my dog along with me, which is... Read More

Mouse Couch

September 26th, 2019

I tried to write a different column about today’s topic and “the thing didn’t happen.” It was stiff and weird and totally contrived, which is a total contrast with the thing that I want to actually write about. That thing is Mouse Couch, a local improv team that I think is really going places. Mouse Couch (no idea what this name is for, except probably something with the repeated “ou” diphthong?) is made up of three dudes, two of whom are deeply strange and one who seems fairly normal and sells real estate in his spare time. The strange ones have respectively inverse relationships with... Read More

Strip Clothes, Not Rights

September 12th, 2019

I’ve written about boylesque before, the male iteration of the classic art of the striptease. It’s a lot of fun, even if the performers don’t have boobies—boobies being the currency of fun, of course. I want to talk about another specific boylesque event because it’s happening not only for the sheer joy of ogling males with the female gaze, but also for the protection and promotion of all booby-having people in the Denver area. The Front Range’s male improvisers and stand-up comics are moonlighting as Chippendale dancers and taking (most) of their clothes off to raise money for women’s... Read More

ComedySportz – Nov. 8th, 2018

November 6th, 2018
ComedySportz

I really just wish that they weren’t Red versus Blue, since this column will be released on what is arguably the nation’s most contentious midterm election day in history (go vote, everyone!). On the other hand, I hate that the two-party political system has radicalized emotional responses to something as benign as primary colors. What am I talking about? It has literally nothing to do with government. It’s just games — theater games, in the form of ComedySportz. There’s a distinct irony that is probably not lost on the group’s founders that most of their participants are not, even... Read More

Denver Arts Weeks – November 2nd-10th

November 3rd, 2018
Denver Arts Week

Once again, the annual Denver Arts Week is upon us with a lengthy list of attractions. More than 300 events are squeezed into nine days from November 2nd-10th. This week(ish) is dedicated to all things artsy. There will be art premiers, comedy, performance art, music, free admission to Denver museums, and much more. This event is as much for the artists as it is for the audience and Denver’s art scene gets to show off everything it has to offer. Festivities begin with First Fridays on November 2nd. The numerous galleries throughout the Santa Fe, Belmar and Tennyson art districts will be offering... Read More

Backstage: Denver Improv Festival

October 23rd, 2018
Denver Improv Festival

‘Tis the season! For ghosts and ghouls and turkey dinners and a depressing-exhilarating amount of gifts to be given and received. It’s inflatable witches and kandy korn and all sorts of treats and festivities for all of us, no matter how secular or religious we may be. Spoiler alert: I’m not actually a huge fan of Halloween, which makes me feel like a tiny minority amongst my Millennial generation. Dressing up in an elaborate costume and hanging out in a room full of drunk people? That’s what I do on weeknights, all year round. What I’m most excited about for this season is what happens... Read More

Horrible Selfish People – a Boulder local’s review on Destination Wedding

September 9th, 2018
Destination Wedding

Hollywood gets things wrong all the time. Possibly the most common error made by writers, directors, producers, and the studio executives overseeing the whole thing? It’s that audiences need the main characters to be likable. That’s not correct, because for a film to succeed, your main character doesn’t have to be someone you’d want to have a beer with. They need to be interesting. The problem comes down to confusing sympathy with empathy. Think of it like this; with sympathy, you’re having a positive emotional reaction to someone else’s situation. In that situation, you like the main... Read More

Colorado Burlesque Festival

July 3rd, 2018
Colorado Burlesque Festival

If you’re a member of the human species, then you like looking at naked ladies. Even those of us who consider a peep to be a sin would still generally admit that it’s a damn fun sin. The art motif in my apartment consists of naked ladies. (Mostly, naked ladies on bicycles…it’s a niche genre.) People used to go to great lengths to acquire an eyeful now and then, but then the internet happened and now we can see amateurs and professionals being naked for free all the time. You get what you pay for, though, and so I suggest unplugging your laptop for a few hours and getting yourself something... Read More