Stand Up Comics

[wawa]

In honor of Matt Rife bombing his own career...do you like stand up?  

Who have you seen that you love?  
I've only seen a handful of no-name comics live, but I've always liked stand up.  I really want to see more live shows.
When I was a kid we had a Paula Poundstone special on VHS that I would watch approx 17 times a year.  
I absolutely adore Sara Millican.  I had tickets to see her in DC, but she got sick and the show was cancelled.  womp womp. 
Waiting for US dates for her new show. 

The algorithm on facebook reels keeps feeding me Taskmaster (so a fun smattering of random british comics...though obviously not doing standup), Jeff Arcuri and Taylor Tomlinson.
I'm always really curious about the comics on social media who mostly post crowdwork - it makes sense to post the crowdwork because it's different very night, so that's an easy steady stream of content, but like...what's your actual set like??  I have no idea if Jeff Arcuri's jokes are actually funny because I've never seen him make one. But he cracks me up with his crowdwork usually because he makes HIMSELF laugh and I have a soft spot for people who crack themselves up.

Who are you into?  Also if you'd like to talk about what a stupid fucking toolbag Matt Rife is, feel free.  LOL  

I saw a take on him from Pat Loller (@patloller) who I follow on tiktok that felt really really dead on accurate. That when you're just a low-mid level comic, you go to all these open mics and comedy shows with all these also wanna bees and not yets and never wills, and the vast vast majority of them are boring ass white dudes. And when you are there every night just fighting it out for your chance at 3 minutes with a microphone, those people start to feel like the whole world.  And then...hey you actually start getting real audiences and being successful and you realize that MOST OF YOUR AUDIENCE is not those guys, it's women. And a NORMAL WELL ADJUSTED PERSON WHO ISN'T A SAD SAD SACK OF SHIT looks at that and goes, "oh wow.  That's amazing. Those boring ass white dudes just weren't my people." and you roll with that.  But if you're Matt Rife you look at that and go "oh noes! but Chad and Brent back at the Laff House still think I'm lame! WHATEVER SHALL i DO???  I know!!!  I'll show them I'm cool!"  And you open your netflix special with DV joke.  Because you couldn't let go of the approval of a bunch of smelly neckbeards. 

Also if you would rather stick a hot poker up your own ass than click on his special on netflix, one of our local papers kindly transcribed the whole joke because his DV joke was wrapped up in a "baltimore sucks" rant (not even a joke...just whining) like it wasn't bad enough alone.  
www.thebaltimorebanner.com/culture/film-tv/matt-rife-natural-selection-netflix-baltimore-joke-ETMYPPRLXFFTZHYDVRZOTVLKU4/

[seeyalater52]

I have nothing of substance to really add here because as a general rule I dislike most comedy, standup comedy in particular, unless it’s highly vetted by a trusted friend or other source. I literally won’t even watch a reel by someone I’m not already familiar with bc (as you all know) I have no chill and 9/10 times it pisses me off.

My main reason for disliking comedy are pretty much the tendency of comics to “punch down” or exploit racism, sexism, misogyny, homo/transphobia, ableism, etc to make a punch line. It’s just not funny to me. And then there’s the stuff that just isn’t funny period.

And it makes going to live shows hard! Within the past couple of years I’ve gone to a couple of live shows that were very enjoyable (Cameron Esposito, Jonathan Van Ness) and Cameron’s opener was really not that funny and it was v straight and the wrong vibe. JVN’s opener was a phenomenal local-ish trans comic so that was an enjoyable find. But usually the openers are either just ok or terrible and it kinda kills the vibe.

ETA: That said I’m totally following the Rife thing from afar bc he’s absurd and watching annoying people self implode is a 2023 hobby of mine, so here for the dragging from people who actually pay attention to comedy outside of this incident!

[DefenseAgainstTheDarkArts22]

I am also in a similar recommended as you so you might already have some of these
James Acaster (Taskmaster season 7)
Nate Bargatze (Hosted SNL a week or two ago)
Randy Feltface (puppet)
Hannah Gadsby (Autistic female)
Drew Lynch

[TR]

I don't know if you'd call Bridget Everett "stand up" per se, she does more than just tell jokes, but I adore her.

Fortune Feimster makes me cry laughing.

seeyalater52 - I'm glad to see the positive review of Jonathan Van Ness's show, my friends and I just got tix to see them in January!

[formerlyak]

We live close to a comedy club owned by Jay Leno. Once a month there is this 10 comics for $10 night. It’s cool because you can see 10 new comics and if they aren’t your cup of tea, you only have to watch them for about 5 minutes until the next one comes on. Maybe there is a place near you that does something similar?

ETA: post pandemic, it appears it’s $25 for 10 comics. Still a good deal.

[cattledogkisses]

I have never heard of Matt Rife, but the way he tries to excuse this by saying the comedy was intended for men is also gross. The fact that he expects men to find DV jokes funny says a lot about who he is.

[StrawberryBlondie]

Mike Birbiglia.

We went to his newest show last year and it was amazing, though I've been a fan of his for quite a while now.

[snapoutofit]

I do like stand up comedy. I’ve been to a lot of shows. Among my favorites:
Eddie Izzard
Trevor Noah
Nate Bargatze
Tom Seguora (sp)
Lewis Black

Liked but didn’t love:
Pete Holmes (he’s…off putting is the best way I can describe)
Sebastian Maniscalco (sp): the physical comedy is too much for me lol

Hated:
Jim Brewer. Not funny. At all. IMO

H has also seen Joe Rogan, Bill Burr and Dave Chapelle. None of them are my cup of tea so I didn’t go with. He said they were all good shows 🤷‍♀️

[AJL]

Ugh. I read that joke transcript. Gross.

I’ve never been to a live stand up show but I have watched some comics here and there that I really like:

Fortune Feimster
Maria Bamford
Nate Bargatze
Nicole Byer
Dulcé Sloan
Michelle Wolfe
Modi Rosenfeld
Suzy Izzard
Trevor Noah

[fumbalina]

I haven't been to anything live in decades but comics I enjoy are Ben Brainerd and Steve Hoffsteter. Hoffsteter posts a lot of crowd work but the occasional section of his set as well. Brainerd posts clips but also has a States series were he personifies each state, plus DC and interacts at "the table." If you did not see any of this during the pandemic there are hours of entertainment if you enjoy it.

[wildrice]

I like live comedy! I've been to a handful of local shows in different cities, and the individual comics can be hit or miss but the experience of going out and seeing live comedy is always fun. I actually went to a show the weekend before last had a "secret" lineup that ended up being all white men and 1 black woman. Guess who was the funniest of the whole group? I do think the field suffers for being less diverse.

Not surprisingly, then, when I think of the shows I've seen and enjoyed the most have been women and Trevor Noah. Kathy Griffin was super funny back when I saw her like 15 years ago. I also enjoyed Amy Schumer's show, though I'm done with her. I was there for a recording of Chris Rock's recent special and didn't find it that funny, but I've liked him over the years. Taylor Tomlinson is great though I haven't seen her live. I also have always liked Chelsea Handler. I guess I haven't seen nearly as many famous comics live as just random people trying to be funny, since I can't think of anyone else.

ETA: Ah! I forgot about Steve Hoffstetter. My H and I have seen him twice and he's funny. He's a white man but seems aware of how to handle (or avoid) things that would be offensive coming from someone like him.

Matt Rife - ugh. I've seen some of his stuff on Tiktok and actually found him to be decent at crowd work, but my H and I watched the first 5 minutes of his special without having heard anything about it, and turned if off. The immediate shitting on Baltimore AND domestic violence joke was an absolute no-go. Even before his punchline, shaming a woman for being a victim who dares to be seen in public was gross. And I'm sick of people who know nothing about Baltimore putting it down.

[DotAndBuzz]

Nov 21, 2023 10:00:25 GMT -5 StrawberryBlondie said:

Mike Birbiglia.

We went to his newest show last year and it was amazing, though I've been a fan of his for quite a while now.

I'll ditto him.

YEAAAARS ago (early 2000's) we went to see him regularly at this tiny local comedy spot. Like, he was the opener for the main act, and we started following him then. 

But otherwise, I feel like a lot of comics go for low hanging fruit of just tons of profanity and really graphic sex talk/jokes, or lean on racism/sexism/misogyny, etc.

[Scout'sHonor]

I've seen a few over the years, some have ended up being problematic (Dane Cook and Daniel Tosh) while Jim Gaffigan, Conan O'Brien and Joel McHale were and still are awesome. I'd like to see Mike Birbiglia too.

I follow Pat Loller and Steve Hofstetter too. There's a few others that if they came near I'd see, like Eunji Kim.

[litebright]

I really like Taylor Tomlinson based on what comes up in my FB reels. I wanted to go see one of her DC area shows but couldn't stomach $200+ tickets each, though, when two of the shows were being recorded for Netflix specials that I can watch later. I think it's great that she is getting a late-night gig, I might actually watch. 

I'm not a huge fan of stand-up, but I went to a local DC Improv show a few months ago with a friend and I was kind of surprised by how much of it was basically the comedian riffing on interactions with the audience. I thought it would be more ... comedic monologues where the audience mostly just listens? And there were definitely moments when those interactions/"jokes" got awkwardly mean, which mostly sucked the fun out of it for me.

[picksthemusic]

One person I will always watch because she is hilarious (and sometimes has the Indigo Girls help close her set!) is Tig Notaro.

I also love Wanda Sykes, Gabriel Iglesias (though some of his stuff isn't great, he's still really funny to me), and Jim Gaffigan.

[eddy]

I can't believe no one has mentioned Tig Notaro yet. She is my absolute #1. Her dry wit is my absolute cup of tea.

I had tickets to see her live during COVID, sigh.

[eddy]

Also if anyone is looking for a podcast, "Handsome" is so freaking funny. It is Tig Notaro, Fortune Feimster and May Martin just shooting the shit. I LOL each Tuesday. They are so funny.

[windyseas]

I love stand up shows. I've seen Eddie Izzard who I ADORE and have wanted to see forever. We saw a Last Comic Standing tour some years ago and I can't remember who was on it, but there was one guy from New York who's jokes did not land at all in our area and he got super mad at the audience. That was not a good look for him. I've also seen Samuel Comroe from America's Got Talent. He's hilarious. Piff the Magic Dragon is also really funny. James Gregory made me gasp for air he was so damn funny.

We have tickets to see Nate Bargatze, and I just got tickets to see Matt Matthews record his special in July. Super excited about both of those.

[picksthemusic]

Nov 21, 2023 9:24:48 GMT -5 seeyalater52 said:

I have nothing of substance to really add here because as a general rule I dislike most comedy, standup comedy in particular, unless it’s highly vetted by a trusted friend or other source. I literally won’t even watch a reel by someone I’m not already familiar with bc (as you all know) I have no chill and 9/10 times it pisses me off.

My main reason for disliking comedy are pretty much the tendency of comics to “punch down” or exploit racism, sexism, misogyny, homo/transphobia, ableism, etc to make a punch line. It’s just not funny to me. And then there’s the stuff that just isn’t funny period.

And it makes going to live shows hard! Within the past couple of years I’ve gone to a couple of live shows that were very enjoyable (Cameron Esposito, Jonathan Van Ness) and Cameron’s opener was really not that funny and it was v straight and the wrong vibe. JVN’s opener was a phenomenal local-ish trans comic so that was an enjoyable find. But usually the openers are either just ok or terrible and it kinda kills the vibe.

ETA: That said I’m totally following the Rife thing from afar bc he’s absurd and watching annoying people self implode is a 2023 hobby of mine, so here for the dragging from people who actually pay attention to comedy outside of this incident!

I had tickets to see JVN last fall but had to cancel my plans and I was SO sad! I love JVN and all they do so I was only happy to go see the show. Next time they're in town I will for sure go.

[doxies]

Nov 21, 2023 10:00:25 GMT -5 StrawberryBlondie said:

Mike Birbiglia.

We went to his newest show last year and it was amazing, though I've been a fan of his for quite a while now.

His newest special is on Netflix today.  I'm looking forward to watching.

I also like listening to his podcast - Working It Out.  He talks with a lot of comics and they talk through jokes they are working on and how to make them better.  

[StrawberryBlondie]

Nov 21, 2023 12:05:53 GMT -5 doxies said:

Nov 21, 2023 10:00:25 GMT -5 StrawberryBlondie said:

Mike Birbiglia.

We went to his newest show last year and it was amazing, though I've been a fan of his for quite a while now.

His newest special is on Netflix today.  I'm looking forward to watching.

I also like listening to his podcast - Working It Out.  He talks with a lot of comics and they talk through jokes they are working on and how to make them better.  

I think that's the one we saw live. The Old Man and the Pool? It's excellent.

[somersault72]

I love Taylor Tomlinson. H and I just went and saw her live in October and she was great. I can't wait to check out her new late night show. Her stuff on mental health is fantastic (she's bipolar herself).

I'd love to see Trevor Noah.

[sent]

A friend just invited me to go see Allie Wong. I had never heard of her but when I read her bio, she is the genre of stand-up I wouldn't mind seeing.

I usually watch SNL to get my fix of comedy. Last season, Marcello Hernandez struck me as hilarious in his scenes. He came from stand-up.

[wawa]

Nov 21, 2023 11:02:51 GMT -5 wildrice said:

I like live comedy! I've been to a handful of local shows in different cities, and the individual comics can be hit or miss but the experience of going out and seeing live comedy is always fun. I actually went to a show the weekend before last had a "secret" lineup that ended up being all white men and 1 black woman. Guess who was the funniest of the whole group? I do think the field suffers for being less diverse.

Not surprisingly, then, when I think of the shows I've seen and enjoyed the most have been women and Trevor Noah. Kathy Griffin was super funny back when I saw her like 15 years ago. I also enjoyed Amy Schumer's show, though I'm done with her. I was there for a recording of Chris Rock's recent special and didn't find it that funny, but I've liked him over the years. Taylor Tomlinson is great though I haven't seen her live. I also have always liked Chelsea Handler. I guess I haven't seen nearly as many famous comics live as just random people trying to be funny, since I can't think of anyone else.

ETA: Ah! I forgot about Steve Hoffstetter. My H and I have seen him twice and he's funny. He's a white man but seems aware of how to handle (or avoid) things that would be offensive coming from someone like him.

Matt Rife - ugh. I've seen some of his stuff on Tiktok and actually found him to be decent at crowd work, but my H and I watched the first 5 minutes of his special without having heard anything about it, and turned if off. The immediate shitting on Baltimore AND domestic violence joke was an absolute no-go. Even before his punchline, shaming a woman for being a victim who dares to be seen in public was gross. And I'm sick of people who know nothing about Baltimore putting it down.

If you ever want company for a local show I'm in!

[ECB]

This is somewhat timely! I went to a live comedy show just a couple weeks ago, after not haven’t been in years. I went with a friend to see a local comic, who is also one of the DJs for a local morning show. It was fine, it had its moments. But by and large, comics who rely on sexual jokes, cussing, and having to imitate masturbating, I find boring. It’s just not creative, in my opinion. Then on Facebook I saw that two people who i used to work with went to the later show that same night. The husband commented how this guy is one of the funniest guys in Baltimore. Huh. Ok! We’ll have to agree to disagree.

[wildrice]

Nov 21, 2023 13:27:06 GMT -5 wawa said:

Nov 21, 2023 11:02:51 GMT -5 wildrice said:

I like live comedy! I've been to a handful of local shows in different cities, and the individual comics can be hit or miss but the experience of going out and seeing live comedy is always fun. I actually went to a show the weekend before last had a "secret" lineup that ended up being all white men and 1 black woman. Guess who was the funniest of the whole group? I do think the field suffers for being less diverse.

Not surprisingly, then, when I think of the shows I've seen and enjoyed the most have been women and Trevor Noah. Kathy Griffin was super funny back when I saw her like 15 years ago. I also enjoyed Amy Schumer's show, though I'm done with her. I was there for a recording of Chris Rock's recent special and didn't find it that funny, but I've liked him over the years. Taylor Tomlinson is great though I haven't seen her live. I also have always liked Chelsea Handler. I guess I haven't seen nearly as many famous comics live as just random people trying to be funny, since I can't think of anyone else.

ETA: Ah! I forgot about Steve Hoffstetter. My H and I have seen him twice and he's funny. He's a white man but seems aware of how to handle (or avoid) things that would be offensive coming from someone like him.

Matt Rife - ugh. I've seen some of his stuff on Tiktok and actually found him to be decent at crowd work, but my H and I watched the first 5 minutes of his special without having heard anything about it, and turned if off. The immediate shitting on Baltimore AND domestic violence joke was an absolute no-go. Even before his punchline, shaming a woman for being a victim who dares to be seen in public was gross. And I'm sick of people who know nothing about Baltimore putting it down.

If you ever want company for a local show I'm in!

Yes! Let's plan on it

[mrsd2006]

I don't think I've ever seen a comedy show live in person. Most of my experience comes from Netflix lol

I like Fortune F, Ron White (he is probably problematic in some way I haven't heard about) Gabriel Iglesias and Ronny Chieng (from the Daily Show)

ETA- I did watch Matt Rife. I was not impressed. 

[TR]

Oh and we've seen Tom Segura a few times and some of his stuff gets a little blue for me, but his delivery is right up my alley.

[melissa]

I was lucky enough to get to see Trevor Noah at a comedy show before he got big. I haven't gone as much lately but years ago I used to love going to comedy shows knowing that these are comedians trying to get their big break. Some were absolutely hilarious and others were just so so.

Before this thread, I watched and enjoyed watching Matt Rife on TikTok but as someone who lives in Baltimore, I will be avoiding his Netflix special and his TikToks moving forward. Thanks for educating me again.

[wawa]

ohh, you know who I want to see? Darcy Michael. I love him and Jer on tiktok. They're touring right now...