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<p>Entries in Reviews (34)</p>
<p>Friday Feb 20 2009  You're Welcome, America: A Final Night with George W. Bush @ Cort Theatre - 2.17.9 By: Sara Benincasa</p>
<p>Friday, February 20, 2009 at 6:55AM I expected Will Ferrell's You're Welcome, America: A Final Night with George W. Bush to be funny, and it was. Like its star, the show was silly, goofy, and undeniably likable. Ferrell has the enviable ability to turn throwaway lines into moments that make you chortle for no good reason (part of this has to do with the fact that many of us are conditioned to laugh when we see a superstar comic. Ferrell can ride the celebrity wave to easy giggles when he so chooses.) I expected the familiar folksy delivery, the Condi jokes (if not the lusty pas de deux with Condi/Pia Glenn, which was excellent), the malapropisms, the frat-boy antics, and the sexual asides (if not the rampant homoeroticism, also excellent.) A couple of points seemed recycled from Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 911, but I did manage to learn a few new facts about the Bush Administration. An extended surreal rant about a North Carolina-based secret army of monkeys was vintage Ferrell, and completely awesome. There's a gut-bustingly funny tale of a near-disastrous foray into an abandoned mineshaft. And Patrick Ferrell, the star's brother, provides a hilarious revelation as a Secret Service agent with boogie-oogie-oogie dance aspirations. I'd love to see Patrick Ferrell in a stage production of his own. Eugene Lee's patriotic set is perfect. Lisa Cuscuna and Chris Cronin nail the video elements. None of those elements, delightful though they were, surprised me. But something else did. About three-quarters of the way through the evening, Ferrell hits a point where the jokes stop, and the audience is invited to share a moment in which the magnitude of the real-life George W. Bush's follies become glaring. Ferrell, in character, takes a moment of silence to remember the U.S. military members and Iraqi civilians killed over the past several years. Something like this is always a gamble in front of a boozy bridge-and-tunnel theatre crowd. I half-expected some bro to yell out a line from Talladega Nights. But the crowd remained silent, and the moment was a poignant break in 75 minutes of near-constant laughs.</p>
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<p>The Apiary | 5 Comments in Reviews Monday Dec 29 2008  Reviews and Appraisals: Sleepwalk with Me By: Andrew Singer</p>
<p>Monday, December 29, 2008 at 9:05AM For most people, fear is an emotion that resides deep within. For Mike Birbiglia, fear is a jackal that looms over his bed every night. Birbiglia is a master story teller who draws you into his world: in Sleepwalk With Me, every moment motivates the next. Much of the story focuses on his lingering inability to face his problems. As Mike lets his whole life drift away and he distances himself from everyone he meets, the literal and metaphorical implications of running around with one's eyes closed becomes apparent. Although there were many fans of his comedy in the audience, the majority of attendees in the packed house were theatrepeople who probably hadn't heard of him before but trusted the judgment of experienced actor/first-time producer Nathan Lane. During a brief Q & A after the show, Mike stated that he was still adjusting internally to the dramatic paradigm, where his goal was no longer to deliver maximum laughs per minute but instead to guide us on a journey filled with at least as many downs as ups. He appears to be doing a good job in his new role, as the show's run (which officially opened Off-Broadway Nov. 11) has been extended into March 2009.</p>
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<p>The Apiary | Post a Comment in Reviews Tuesday Oct 14 2008  Reviews and Appraisals: Tom McCaffrey's Lou Diamond Phillips?By: Neil Padover</p>
<p>Tuesday, October 14, 2008 at 9:37AM Tom McCaffrey's album goes on sale nationwide today--it's available now at fine online convenience stores like Amazon and iTunes. Contributor Neil Padover got his hands on a hard copy a while ago and gave it a couple rotations. It might still be spinning in his Discman for all we know.REVIEWTom McCaffrey loves 80's movies, doesn't pay his phone bill, and he really, really hates helping his friends move. A lot. In his debut album, Lou Diamond Phillips? McCaffrey doesn't make any grand statements about politics or the twenty-something struggle. He just focuses on what he does best: telling jokes. The album, at times self-deprecating, at others self-obsessed, captures perfectly our simultaneous fascination and hatred for everything pop-culture. McCaffrey brilliantly picks apart commercials for the Marines and JC Penney in the simplest way he knows: by using their own words against them. He is a master at dissecting common phrases and unpacking them until we look like complete idiots. It's part of his charm and what makes this so much fun to listen to over and over again. He is unabashed about calling out everyone that speaks and acts without thinking about how they come across (from a friend who claims a song "changed his life" to devoted rocker groupies who will please a roadie just to get a chance with the band). The best part of the album--and I mean this sincerely--is that it isn't as heavily produced as other CDs. We can hear distinct audience members' laughs throughout. The hesitations and bungled segues only add to the authenticity of the record. Recorded for a diehard crowd on the Lower East Side, Lou Diamond Phillips? is raw, it's real, and it's hilarious.</p>
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<p>The Apiary | Post a Comment in Reviews Monday Oct 13 2008  Reviews and Appraisals: 30 Rock: Season 2</p>
<p>Monday, October 13, 2008 at 10:14AM In this rickety roller coaster economy, were you at Best Buy last week wondering whether the strike shortened second season of 30 Rock was worth the MSRP? Maybe you'll find out below!REVIEWArrrgh! We totally could have LIVED FOREVER DIGITALLY on this DVD set if we would have first been able to get in to 30 Rock Live at The UCBT and then laughed distinctively during all of the funny parts--you know, huge uneditable guffaws that rise deep from our cavernous belly! We can't believe this show is one of the bonus features. Our big chance at something and we blow it. Ah well. One plus is that we no longer have to reconstruct the magical evening using only our minds and details provided by a Huffington Post blog entry. We suppose our only way of getting on the DVD for Season 3 of the best show on television is by doing it the old fashioned way, by doling out rave reviews like we're Peter Travers high on blurbs. Maybe they'll put our name on the box. 30 Rock: YES!!! YES!! YES!PICTURE REVIEWAfter the jump!</p>
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<p>The Apiary | 1 Comment in Reviews Thursday Oct 02 2008  Reviews and Appraisals | Free Range Chickens, By: Simon Rich</p>
<p>Thursday, October 2, 2008 at 5:15AM</p>
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<p>The Apiary | Post a Comment in Reviews Monday Aug 25 2008  Reviews & Appraisals: Mitch Hedberg's "Do You Believe in Gosh?"By: Dan Wilbur</p>
<p>Monday, August 25, 2008 at 6:00AM On the posthumous album "Do You Believe in Gosh?" Mitch Hedberg pleads: "Hold on, listen to some more." Perhaps another name for the album could have been "Trust Me, It's Funny," a line he repeats to his ubersupportive audience. Even when a joke kills, Hedberg relies on the self-deprecation that made his loose delivery so famous on his first album, "Strategic Grill Locations." When you have to quell an audience's laughter for a joke that's not finished you know you're doing something right. And even when Hedberg knows a joke is missing a punchline, he doesn't explain himself. He just ditches it, sometimes mid-sentence, and the audience eats it up. The first track, "Improv Fairy Tale," offers a glimpse into how some of his longer jokes might have evolved had he not died of a drug overdose at 37. But the most interesting track, "Phil," is an extended conversation with a heckler. Although Hedberg only half-jokingly says, "I got a great job -- I can talk for 45 minutes straight. If someone says one word, you're fucking outta here," he remains sensitive. And some of his better lines come out of this bizarre interaction. Hedberg is remembered as a comedic-countercultural icon and a master of the one-liner, but "Do You Believe in Gosh?" reveals that he also had some of the best chops in the business, smacking down a heckler without necessarily insulting him. There's not much else a person can say about a comic of this magnitude. Just trust me, it's funny. "Do You Believe in Gosh?" is scheduled for release Sept. 9 on Comedy Central Records. The nationwide release party will coincide with the "Mitch Across America" tribute, featuring comedians who have been influenced by him performing in clubs across the country.--Dan Wilbur is a stand-up comic and comedy writer.RELATED• A Page From Mitch's Notebook (via Dead Frog) • Buy Tickets Now for New York's portion of "Mitch Across America"• Punchline Magazine has some audio clipsCorrections & Amplifications: The first track, "Improv Fairy Tale," offers a glimpse into how some of his longer jokes might have evolved had he not died of a drug overdose at 37. A previous post incorrectly said Hedberg died at 27.</p>
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<p>keithhuang | 6 Comments in Reviews Friday Aug 15 2008  Reviews and Appraisals: Lewis Black's Anticipation</p>
<p>Friday, August 15, 2008 at 8:11AM Comedian Mike Drucker just gave Lewis Black's new album, Anticipation, a twirl on his CD Walkman and the suspense is tearing us apart. Has Mike's probing ear been tickled??REVIEW WITH WORDSLewis Black has produced an album about one emotion: the inherent disappointment that lurks beyond whatever we're waiting for. While more politically minded LB fans may be dismayed that he only briefly touches on Republicans and Democrats--the album was recorded in late 2007 before the campaign was really in full swing--his exploration of waiting and, well, anticipating, is stunning. Even old hat subjects are handled from fresh angles. The track "My....... Virginity" is a story about a young Black trying to carefully create a perfect moment despite his body's desire to barrel through the experience. "Xmas" moves away from the standard mocking of Christmas' commerciality to Lewis wondering if such a big holiday has actually eclipsed other potential moments of pleasure. Though the subject matter might seem dark, Black brings it back by apologizing to the audience and closing on a news story about a B.J. gone so awry that you'll be happy your sex life is par for the course (or substandard). Throughout the later years of his life, George Carlin repeatedly referred to Lewis Black as his favorite comedian. After listening to Anticipation, it's not hard to see why.PICTURE REVIEWAfter the jump!</p>
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<p>The Apiary | 2 Comments in Reviews Monday Jul 21 2008  Reviews and Appraisals: Louis CK's 'Chewed Up'By: Dan Wilbur</p>
<p>Monday, July 21, 2008 at 8:00AM Louis C.K. at Comic Relief in 2006 | Photo: Daniel LangerREVIEW WITH WORDSMore than any other profession, stand-up comedy blurs the lines that separate professional and personal life. And judging by the material in his new one-hour Showtime special "Chewed Up," Louis C.K. is on a career ascent similar to that of Pryor and Cosby. His special, which is scheduled to air in October, shifts away from anecdotal reflections and isolated events of stupidity, to much deeper revelations about his personal life as an uncontrollable mass of tragedy. Set-ups often trump punchlines: "My wife and I have been together for nine years ... so we're just about done." Though Louis C.K. does relent -- he respects his family's sacrifices for his own worthless, fat self; in fact, his routine feels like a twisted homage. I wonder how much material he could mine from just explaining the justification for exposing his family's fucked-up qualities. As any fan knows, Louis C.K. favors the bold. His set begins with an analysis of the words "Cunt," "Faggot" and "The 'N' word." But good comedy is never about just pushing boundaries -- you gotta make 'em laugh. And Louis C.K. acknowledges that by not only rejecting the safety of P.C., but also by rejecting the simple, easy premises about family that have since gone stale.REVIEW USING A PICTURE--Dan Wilbur is a founding member of Bard College's Stand-Up Comedy Club and comedy show producer in New York. He has performed with Seth Herzog and Becky Donohue. He currently works as an assistant to Kambri Crews at Comix.</p>
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