LSPoorEeyorick
09-20-2008, 12:26 AM
Rank the Swank - Theater and Movies
http://www.loungeoftomorrow.com/LoT/images/rts/coolO.gifhttp://www.loungeoftomorrow.com/LoT/images/rts/coolO.gifhttp://www.loungeoftomorrow.com/LoT/images/rts/coolO.gifhttp://www.loungeoftomorrow.com/LoT/images/rts/coolO.gifhttp://www.loungeoftomorrow.com/LoT/images/rts/coolO.gif Overall Swank Rank
Judd Apatow Presents: a Night of Comedy
Upright Citizens Brigade (in Hollywood)
Hollywood, CA
9/19/08
http://losangeles.ucbtheatre.com/shows/1875 (http://losangeles.ucbtheatre.com/shows/1875)
The Lowdown
A $10 "Judd Apatow hosts surprise guests" comedy outing turns out to be a star-studded event!
__________________________________________________
The Scene
It all started as an LA/Events twitter crossed my path, suggesting that Judd Apatow - director and/or producer of such recent comedy gold as The Forty-Year-Old Virgiin, Knocked Up, Superbad, Forgetting Sarah Marshall... Freaks and Geeks... The Ben Stiller Show (yes, when Stiller was still good...) - was hosting a comedy night tonight. Advance tickets were already sold out, so Tom volunteered to wait for two hours before showtime, on the off-chance we made it in to the show from the wait list.
And so lucky we did! We were practically the last people allowed in, but what ensued was over two hours of crazy, crazy, craziness. As it turns out, Apatow's next writing/directing project, "Funny People," is about stand-up comedy. His actors are practicing stand-up for the film they're about to start shooting. So we paid $10 a ticket and were treated to the stand-up of, in order of appearance:
-Jonah Hill, recent star of "Superbad"
-Aubrey Plaza, up-and-comer from NY
-Seth Rogen, star of "Knocked Up," writer/star of "Superbad" and "Pineapple Express"
-Kevin James, star of "King of Queens" and several recent and upcoming films
-Adam Sandler. ****in' Adam Sandler!
-Ken Jeong, Apatow's frequent collaborator, and
-Mike O'Connell, performing together as rap group "Million Dollar Strong."
-Andy Dick. Yes, Andy Dick.
That seems to work out to about $1 per performer. Thanks to a couple of extraneous people, and Apatow himself (who had many of the gems of the night.)
Fewer than 100 people were crammed into the tiny black box theater at UCB, and none of us were farther than a stone's throw from the stage. Tom says it wasn't even a stone's throw. Maybe a stone toss, underhand.
Anyway, some of the performers had a lot of experience, some had very little, but all were working on finding the perfect jokes for the movie. And even when they bombed, they were quick to make fun of themselves. (This is usually my favorite part of comedy - the successful bomb.) Apatow worked as MC between the acts, segueing amusingly from act to act, displaying the particular brand of raunch and pathos he's so known for. In fact, that raunch and pathos extended across pretty much all of the performances. Raunch, pathos, and masturbation. It was a pleasureful night!
Jonah Hill was probably the least-experienced, but he fared well among the more seasoned members of the group.
Aubrey Plaza was unknown to us before tonight, but she was Tom's favorite act, and definitely one of mine. Her wry delivery was terrific - she's definitely someone to watch as her career blossoms. She's very good at playing a character that seems less knowing than she was. A nicely layered performance.
Seth Rogen was terrific! He definitely has a great deal of confidence and presence at the mic, and kept the audience rolling throughout his set. Charming, very goofy, very much in keeping with the character he's created in the Apatow films.
Kevin James had a brilliant set. Really knows how to turn something on its head. In case anyone else sees it, that's all we're going to say.
Adam Sandler! Adam ****in' Sandler. I grew up watching him play Opera Man and Cajun Man and Pickle Mustache Halloween Costume man on Saturday Night Live and I was very excited to see him live. He was playing a character throughout his set, moreso than the others. He was searching for the right blend of humor and emotional 'reveal' for the character's circumstances, and it was fascinating to watch him move through and find what worked and what didn't. He had a bit of a back-and-forth mid-set with Apatow shouting from backstage, and this was almost the funniest bit of the night. We still don't know if it was planned or not.
My personal favorite act of the night was a musical group called "Million Dollar Strong." A man strolls out in his tighty-whities and an open bathrobe. He introduces his "foreign exchange student," played by Apatow regular Ken Jeong, who stumbles out awkwardly, clutching at his fuzzy silver unitard. Together they perform the... um, it's hard to describe... most painfully awkwardly hilarious rap songs I've ever witnessed. One of them is available online, but it really isn't half the impact of seeing them rocking out live. Totally bizarre and delightful. I couldn't keep my eyes off Jeong as he pranced about and sang the rap "hooks." Completely absurd - and I love me some absurdity.
The closing act of the night was an Andy-Kauffmanesque performance from a sober Andy Dick. Truly, truly fascinating stuff, involving an "audience" member and all of the baggage that comes with rehab and alcoholism. Absolutely based in the comedy of awkwardness. It was very nice to see him doing something... funny? Raw? Real. At times you wondered if it was going off script and becoming real, and the tension it created was truly unusual and fascinating. I'd always wondered what it would have been like to be in the audience at an early Kaufman show, and now I kind of feel like I know.
The cool news about all of this is that they're doing a repeat performance! I don't know if the guests will be the same, but there's another showing next Saturday for folks who missed it but might be interested. We highly, highly recommend it. Presale tickets are already gone, but we were at the top of the waiting list and made it in, so I'd chance it if you're at all interested. I mean, what a theater full of talent. And what cheap tickets. If you're at all interested in Apatow or comedy, you owe it to yourself to check it out!
http://www.loungeoftomorrow.com/LoT/images/rts/coolO.gifhttp://www.loungeoftomorrow.com/LoT/images/rts/coolO.gifhttp://www.loungeoftomorrow.com/LoT/images/rts/coolO.gifhttp://www.loungeoftomorrow.com/LoT/images/rts/coolO.gifhttp://www.loungeoftomorrow.com/LoT/images/rts/coolO.gif Overall Swank Rank
Judd Apatow Presents: a Night of Comedy
Upright Citizens Brigade (in Hollywood)
Hollywood, CA
9/19/08
http://losangeles.ucbtheatre.com/shows/1875 (http://losangeles.ucbtheatre.com/shows/1875)
The Lowdown
A $10 "Judd Apatow hosts surprise guests" comedy outing turns out to be a star-studded event!
__________________________________________________
The Scene
It all started as an LA/Events twitter crossed my path, suggesting that Judd Apatow - director and/or producer of such recent comedy gold as The Forty-Year-Old Virgiin, Knocked Up, Superbad, Forgetting Sarah Marshall... Freaks and Geeks... The Ben Stiller Show (yes, when Stiller was still good...) - was hosting a comedy night tonight. Advance tickets were already sold out, so Tom volunteered to wait for two hours before showtime, on the off-chance we made it in to the show from the wait list.
And so lucky we did! We were practically the last people allowed in, but what ensued was over two hours of crazy, crazy, craziness. As it turns out, Apatow's next writing/directing project, "Funny People," is about stand-up comedy. His actors are practicing stand-up for the film they're about to start shooting. So we paid $10 a ticket and were treated to the stand-up of, in order of appearance:
-Jonah Hill, recent star of "Superbad"
-Aubrey Plaza, up-and-comer from NY
-Seth Rogen, star of "Knocked Up," writer/star of "Superbad" and "Pineapple Express"
-Kevin James, star of "King of Queens" and several recent and upcoming films
-Adam Sandler. ****in' Adam Sandler!
-Ken Jeong, Apatow's frequent collaborator, and
-Mike O'Connell, performing together as rap group "Million Dollar Strong."
-Andy Dick. Yes, Andy Dick.
That seems to work out to about $1 per performer. Thanks to a couple of extraneous people, and Apatow himself (who had many of the gems of the night.)
Fewer than 100 people were crammed into the tiny black box theater at UCB, and none of us were farther than a stone's throw from the stage. Tom says it wasn't even a stone's throw. Maybe a stone toss, underhand.
Anyway, some of the performers had a lot of experience, some had very little, but all were working on finding the perfect jokes for the movie. And even when they bombed, they were quick to make fun of themselves. (This is usually my favorite part of comedy - the successful bomb.) Apatow worked as MC between the acts, segueing amusingly from act to act, displaying the particular brand of raunch and pathos he's so known for. In fact, that raunch and pathos extended across pretty much all of the performances. Raunch, pathos, and masturbation. It was a pleasureful night!
Jonah Hill was probably the least-experienced, but he fared well among the more seasoned members of the group.
Aubrey Plaza was unknown to us before tonight, but she was Tom's favorite act, and definitely one of mine. Her wry delivery was terrific - she's definitely someone to watch as her career blossoms. She's very good at playing a character that seems less knowing than she was. A nicely layered performance.
Seth Rogen was terrific! He definitely has a great deal of confidence and presence at the mic, and kept the audience rolling throughout his set. Charming, very goofy, very much in keeping with the character he's created in the Apatow films.
Kevin James had a brilliant set. Really knows how to turn something on its head. In case anyone else sees it, that's all we're going to say.
Adam Sandler! Adam ****in' Sandler. I grew up watching him play Opera Man and Cajun Man and Pickle Mustache Halloween Costume man on Saturday Night Live and I was very excited to see him live. He was playing a character throughout his set, moreso than the others. He was searching for the right blend of humor and emotional 'reveal' for the character's circumstances, and it was fascinating to watch him move through and find what worked and what didn't. He had a bit of a back-and-forth mid-set with Apatow shouting from backstage, and this was almost the funniest bit of the night. We still don't know if it was planned or not.
My personal favorite act of the night was a musical group called "Million Dollar Strong." A man strolls out in his tighty-whities and an open bathrobe. He introduces his "foreign exchange student," played by Apatow regular Ken Jeong, who stumbles out awkwardly, clutching at his fuzzy silver unitard. Together they perform the... um, it's hard to describe... most painfully awkwardly hilarious rap songs I've ever witnessed. One of them is available online, but it really isn't half the impact of seeing them rocking out live. Totally bizarre and delightful. I couldn't keep my eyes off Jeong as he pranced about and sang the rap "hooks." Completely absurd - and I love me some absurdity.
The closing act of the night was an Andy-Kauffmanesque performance from a sober Andy Dick. Truly, truly fascinating stuff, involving an "audience" member and all of the baggage that comes with rehab and alcoholism. Absolutely based in the comedy of awkwardness. It was very nice to see him doing something... funny? Raw? Real. At times you wondered if it was going off script and becoming real, and the tension it created was truly unusual and fascinating. I'd always wondered what it would have been like to be in the audience at an early Kaufman show, and now I kind of feel like I know.
The cool news about all of this is that they're doing a repeat performance! I don't know if the guests will be the same, but there's another showing next Saturday for folks who missed it but might be interested. We highly, highly recommend it. Presale tickets are already gone, but we were at the top of the waiting list and made it in, so I'd chance it if you're at all interested. I mean, what a theater full of talent. And what cheap tickets. If you're at all interested in Apatow or comedy, you owe it to yourself to check it out!