Live Comedy L.A.

Dan Bialek, the producer of “12 Shiny Nickels”, that show with 12 comedians in 1 hour, posted this bulletin in the events section on Myspace:

Hi, this is Dan Bialek. I run the 12 Shiny Nickels show on Fridays and Saturdays at 11pm.

I would like clarify one issue that arose at tonight’s show. And I’d like to apologize for not making this point more clear in my previous posts.

EVERYONE WHO COMES TO THE SHOW MUST PAY $5 AT THE DOOR.

INCLUDING ALL COMEDIANS.

AGAIN.

INCLUDING ALL COMEDIANS.

I’m sorry. I know that a lot of other shows and comedy clubs in LA let comics hang out at the venue and watch shows for free. I, however, cannot afford this luxury because I have to pay for the theater space, sound equipment, promotions, videography, editing and especially all of the free beer out of my own pocket. And I’m also doing this two nights a week and expenses add up quick.

(I’ll let you in on a little secret, all three shows that I’ve done so far have ended up costing much more to put on than they pulled in money-wise.)

I apologize for those of you who came down to the show tonight under the assumption that you would be granted free admission if you were a comic. I was not trying to mislead you. But please understand that $5 for all the beer you can drink (two nights a week) is still a pretty good deal whether you are a comedian or not.

Thanks again to everyone who came to the show and who performed on it as well. I’m looking forward to many more in the future.

–dan

P.S. Please do not respond to this bulletin with an email asking me to book you on the show. When I want you to do the show I will email you. I promise.

This show is quickly becoming a logistical nightmare for Dan. I feel bad. Too many comedians, two shows a week, free beer, not a enough help, and a terrible business model are going to crush this show. Small line-ups, great comedians, great venue, smart promotion, and slow growth…wins.

Linda Pine produces a stand-up comedy show once a month at Meltdown Comics on Sunset called Comedy Meltdown that is at the top of the list when it comes to professionalism. Yet, some how she pulls it off in a kick-back, nerdy environment that I dig.

The show is free. The beer is free and sponsored (yes…sponsored) by Asahi. You actually have to make a purchase at the store to get free beer…which is genius. It could be a $0.25 comic…doesn’t matter. But it’s a win all the way around for everyone. The lighting is great…the sound system rocks…the comics have their own little room. And check out that huge poster behind the stage. This show kicks ass. I recommend it to everyone. All promoters should aspire to this level of professionalism.

Three comedians I would like to highlight from a stellar line-up: Jonah Ray (who has hosting duties for the monthly show), Chip Pope, and Brent Weinbach:

Jonah Ray is a pro at hosting and did a great job at setting up the other comedians. You’ve heard me use the point guard analogy for hosts - he nailed it. Love that.

Chip Pope was a little unconventional tonight and took on the role of a character name R.O. Mance. A British pop singer from the 80’s. HI-larious! I’m normally not a big fan of this stuff during a stand-up show…but he killed it.

Brent Weinbach might be one of the most talented performers I have seen on stage in a while. I really enjoyed the Russian Alphabet bit…the upper-case letter in particular.

This is a must see show…so stay tuned for next month…definitely a fun Friday night out.

Last night, I went to Dan Bialek’s new show “Twelve Shiny Nickels” at The Gardner Theaters. It’s a new concept show where 12 comedians do their best 5 minutes of material so that the audience is in and out in one hour. Sounded interesting given that I think stand-up comedy line-ups should have no more than 6 or 7 comedians at the absolute maximum because no one benefits from a long show with a lot of comedians. No one. Dan’s idea was intriguing because he was going to get us in and out in 1 hour. (more…)

You have heard me harp on how large line-ups can kill stand-up comedy. Dan Bialek, however, has created a concept that may have circumvented that rule. We’ll see.

Dan has created a new show called “Twelve Shiny Nickels” - 12 comics, each one does their best 5 minute set. So the entire show only lasts an hour. Plus free beer. It only costs $5 and the line-ups for both Friday and Saturday night look good. I will try to get there on Friday night. Check out his site for all the details: www.twelveshinynickels.com

TWELVE SHINY NICKELS
STANDUP COMEDY
FRIDAYS & SATURDAYS AT 11PM
(Beginning June 20th)

THE GARDNER STAGES
1501 N. GARDNER STREET (AT SUNSET)
HOLLYWOOD, CA 90046
$5 AT THE DOOR.
FREE BEER ALL NIGHT.

Tuesday is always a big night for live comedy in Los Angeles. Tonight is no different - Dane Cook, Judd Apatow, Sarah Silver, and many more on the card.

Laugh Factory - Jay Davis Comedy:
Jay is friends with all the best comedians in the city and they all do his Tuesday night show at the Laugh Factory…including Dane Cook (who will probably be there tonight).

Info:
10pm @ Laugh Factory
E-mail Jay @ his Myspace for half of the tickets (which means $10). Get there early!!!

Upright Citizens Brigade:
UCB has two unbelievable shows tonight - Comedy Death Ray with Sarah Silverman and Marc Maron and See You Next Tuesday with Judd Apatow (yeah…that Judd Apatow).

Info:
Comedy Death Ray @ 8:30pm
$5

See You Next Tuesday @10:30
FREE

Red Rock - Ballgame’s Laugh Lounge:
I venture to say that tonight’s line-up just might be the best in Laugh Lounge history. Colona, Franjola, Pazsitzky, Segura all in one line-up? Really? For Free? Really?

Info:

No Name Comics is one of a handful of stand-up comedy rooms in Los Angeles I feel comfortable recommending every week. At quick glance, tonight’s line-up looks solid. I haven’t seen all the performers, but I know Matty “Ballgame” Balaker will be doing his thing. Hopefully, you’ll get a chance to see the set he wants to perform on Ferguson…it’s tight. Brian Keith Etheridge will also be in the house and a guy named Tom Clark who is supposed to be hilarious…but I have not see him. So if you have an easy going Sunday and don’t feel like spending a ton of dough but still want to go out, I always recommend No Name Comics. Info below:

No NaMe CoMiCs @ROOM 5
143 LA BREA 2ND FLOOR (JUST SOUTH OF BEVERLY)
HOLLYWOOD 90036
SUNDAY MAY 25 @7PM
NO COVER - FULL BAR - DINNER AVAILABLE

Jim Gaffigan hits The Wiltern on Saturday, November 8th. Tickets officially go on sale tomorrow according to Live Nation. However, Ticketmaster already has tickets on sale right now as part of an “internet pre-sale”. No code necessary. Gaffigan is a spectacular comedian and 100% clean so you can take the entire family. He tours so much that it is tough to see him do stand-up comedy in Los Angeles. The link to Ticketmaster is below.

GAFFIGAN TICKETS HERE

The GREAT Dave Attell is in L.A. this week. Normally a New York guy…Attell gets out to L.A. a few times a year to do stand-up comedy in the our clubs. You can catch him:

Tuesday - “Life of the Party with Jay Davis” at 10pm at the Laugh Factory

Wednesday - “Comedy Juice” at 10pm at the Hollywood Improv

Thursday - 10pm at Hollywood Improv

Friday - 8pm at Hollywood Improv

Saturday - 10pm at Hollywood Improv

That means he MAY be at the Laugh Factory at 8pm on Saturday…but I will have to check on that. If you have never seen Attell…he is arguably the best club comedian in the country. Meaning…if you are going to experience live comedy at a club…and you have one comedian to go watch…it’s Dave Attell. Two of my favorite comedians…Artie Lange and Greg Fitzsimmons both said the same thing last year on the Howard Stern Show…and I have to agree. He’s the man. Make the calls…book the tickets…and go see Attell this weekend.

We hit up No Name Comics on Sunday at Room 5. Host Brad Stewart puts on the show every Sunday and usually gets a decent crowd from what I hear…but always a very solid line-up of funny comedians, including the likes of Aisha Tyler and Brody Stevens on a regular basis. No difference last night as far as comedians are concerned, but the room was absolutely packed - which was terrific to see. I really hope we can help keep this room full every Sunday night. Last night featured 4 of my favorite comedians in Los Angeles - scratch that - in the country and the discovery of 3 more terrific talents.

Favorites: Andrew Norelli, Iliza Shlesinger, Christina Pazsitzky, Ryan Sickler
New Discoveries: Carlos Kotkin, Andrew Orvedahl, Alex Nussbaum

You’ve heard me talk about the favorites over and over again. But I’d like to make something clear…great comedians are like fine wine - you can experience them many times but enjoy them just as much as you did the first time…and notice new things every time you see them…and appreciate the nuances that you never recognized previously. It’s really incredible. I’ve seen Ryan Sickler do the same set at least 10 times…to the point where he apologized to me before going on stage. But the reality is you will never see a comedian do the same set, the same way…ever. And last night, Sickler performed his set better than I’ve ever seen it. He truly has evolved as a comedian in terms of his delivery and pacing. His material has always been amazing but watching him last night was just awesome. The same is true for Norelli and CP (CP is how we will refer to Christina Pazsitzky from now on). I love watching them because they are on-point every single time. I am so happy that Norelli is filming for the Late, Late Show tonight and CP is going full steam with stand-up. Please do yourself a favor and get out and see them at your earliest convenience. I will pay you money if you do not enjoy their performance.

Carlos Kotkin was an interesting change-up as far as stand-up comedy is concerned. He is more of a story teller. I dug it…and so did the rest of the crowd. He had a bit about herpes and HIV that was off the charts. Andrew Orvedahl and Alex Nussbaum were great surprises as well. Nussbaum’s jokes about his Russian mother were killer and Overdahl’s Riverside jokes were great. I’ll definitely get out to see these guys again.

Good night of stand-up comedy on a Sunday night. Now it’s time to pick my brackets.

Largo is moving to the Coronet Theater in a few months according to Soundboard at the L.A. Times. The new theater includes a 280 seat theater and a smaller 90 seat theater located on La Cienega. The question remains, what portion of the programming will be dedicated to live comedy? However, it’s quite possible that a bigger Largo with two rooms will put more pressure on the other major clubs in the city - Laugh Factory, Improv, and Comedy Store - to step-up their game in the form of promotion, quality of product, and innovation i.e. getting on the Web 2.0 bandwagon. Additionally, the right amount of crossover promotion by Largo between its music shows and comedy shows will no doubt drive more fans to live comedy - at least from an awareness perspective. If I’m a stand-up comedian, I’m contacting owner Mark Flanagan right now about helping him promote his comedy shows. Have to imagine that if you put the foot work in, you’ll get the time. Take advantage of the cross-promotional opportunities that Largo offers.