One of our dear friends (and admin of this very blog) has been booked for her first professional comedy gig (that means she’s getting actual cash money to tell jokes), so come out next Friday (July 14) to the Laugh Riot Bethesda Hyatt (7400 Wisconsin Avenue) at 7 p.m. $10 + a 2 drink minimum. There are plenty of great restaurants in the Bethesda corridor plus the Landmark movie theaters - make a night of it.
Because I recently missed Snow Patrol and the Decembrists because they were sold out, and because Ted Leo,Lily Allen, Kaiser Chiefs, TV on the Radio, and Arctic Monkeys are all sold out at the 930 and the Killers are sold out at the Patriot Center, I don’t want you to miss your chance on these:
Lily Allen will be at Sonar in Baltimore on May 28th. If you’re inclined, it’s a good show and probably the last chance to see her in a smaller venue. I imagine her next tour will be playing larger spaces.
Stephen Marley w/ Jr. Gong at 930 on May 8. For some reason, they aren’t reminding anyone that Jr. Gong is Damien Marley and to me, that’s a good enough reason, even if I didn’t like Stephen.
Bloc Party was just announced for June 3 at Constitution. It’s not my favorite room for a concert, so I leave that up to you.
John Prine at the Warner Theatre on June 15. I’m not usually a fan of folk, but I like his voice.
Charlie Murphy at the Improv June 22 - 24. This will sell out quickly so get your tickets now.
This being the third time I’ve seen Jon Stewart’s stand-up routine (first at the Meyerhoff in Baltimore and the second at DAR here in D.C.), I expected to be slightly disappointed in the show only because I didn’t anticipate much new material; however, I think the Washington Post reviewer nailed it when he wrote that the audience was “like music concertgoers hearing the first few bars or beats of a song.” Stewart started off by aptly boiling President’s Bush’s discourse down to its predictable pattern - “I do A and then B; therefore I am a B A’er,” but when he moved into his squawking impersonation of Cheney, the audience erupted simultaneously as if we all congratulated each other for being in on the same joke. Sure, he closed with the same old bit about his wife and their assortment of mismatched projectile vomitting pets, but who cares? It’s Jon Stewart, telling stories at a venue in a town mid-way between Baltimore and D.C.
Of course, if you missed the show, I feel for you - no, seriously, I do. Maybe catching Kathy Griffin at the Kennedy Center on October 4th might make you feel better, but mmmmm, I’m guessing probably not. Myself, I’ll be holed up with some chinese take-out watching the season premiere of Lost. Sorry, Kathy, maybe next time.
For those that aren’t afraid of having their preconceived notions blasted to hell and back, be sure to catch Bob Saget at Lisner Auditorium on November 9th. Actually, before you order a ticket, I strongly urge you to rent last year’s documentary film The Aristocrats which features Saget telling possibly the lewdest version of the nauseating joke in the entire film. Yeah, you heard me - Bob Saget - lewdest joke teller - ever.
Avast ye, scurvy dogs! ‘Tis a day for parlaying like pirates or buccaneers or privateerrs whichsoever ye prefer to be called.
Land lubbers can be checking out this guide for pirate lingo more advanced than “Arrr!”:
It hardly seems like we’d have to import people from New York for political humor and I’m seriously wondering why it’s at Meriwether Post, but there are still lawn tickets for Jon Stewart available on Ticketmaster for Saturday, 16 September.
I’ve seen him a couple of times, and he’s definitely funnier in person than on television. (Just think of all the things he’s not allowed to say on television.) If you haven’t seen him before, it’s probably worth it, though I would have to think twice before seeing a comedian in an outdoor arena. I’m personally a fan of the smaller venues – crowded as it is, I like the intimacy of the Improv. If it has to be a theatre, I’ve seen some great shows at the Warner. While I’ve loved the comics, I don’t like DAR for a comedy show –it’s too big and impersonal for me. And that’s what I’d be afraid of on the lawn at Meriwether. But what do I know? It’ll be funny either way. And you already know what he looks like.