March 19 was National Laugh Day.
Understandably, you might have missed it this year as it was about the time many Colorado businesses temporarily closed because of COVID-19 restrictions.
And no one was laughing at anything except the toilet paper situation. And then stay-at-home orders swept in.
When Mesa Park Vineyards was finally able to start its annual Comedy Night in the Vines series in June, three stand-up comedians arrived with fresh energy and new material they had come up with while not performing for three months.
Some admitted to practicing their stand-up routines their backyards, “because what else do you do when you can’t perform,” said Laura Black, Mesa Park’s owner.
“It was really slow for a while. I think they were glad to be back,” she said.
The audience seemed glad to be back, too, even if everyone had to be spaced at safe distances across the winery’s large patio, she said.
“We had a lot of people say, ‘We just need to laugh. Everything is just so serious this year,’” Black said.
All of the winery’s comedy nights sold out, even the weeknights added during the season, which ended in September.
Las Colonias Amphitheater also is seeing plenty of interest in comedy acts. Bert Kreischer’s show on Thursday, Oct. 8, sold out. Tickets for the Brian Regan’s show on Friday, Oct. 9, also are selling well, according to Maria Rainsdon, general manager for that venue as well as Avalon Theatre.
The two comedians appeal to different demographics, with Kreischer having the hot-right-now reputation of a party boy and appealing to an audience not bothered as much by any risk of attending an event. Regan has been a big name for quite a while now in the world of comedy, Rainsdon said.
His 2019 show at Avalon Theatre nearly sold out. “He really is one of the best,” she said.
However, even Regan had plenty of downtime due to COVID-19. It was only six weeks ago that he was able to get back into comedy clubs that hadn’t been open for months, the comedian said during a recent phone interview.
He’s also done more shows at outside venues than usual, which is a sign of our times, he said.
As a comedian, you want a room with a low ceiling, everyone packed together with the laughs bouncing contagiously off the walls, he said.
What is safe now is the complete opposite of that, “so it makes it quite a challenge in the comedy world. But I’m not complaining, it’s just a different world,” Regan said.
Wide open settings might not be ideal, “but you still can get people going, you can still get people laughing,” he said.
Right now, Regan is using that laughter to fine tune material for a Netflix comedy special scheduled to be recorded in two weeks at the Tuachan Amphitheatre in Ivins, Utah.
The special originally was set to be shot six months ago, and was postponed because of COVID-19, he said.
For several months he was at home, and “I enjoyed shutting down the comedy show for awhile,” he said. He chilled out and “enjoyed not thinking comedically.”
In addition, comedy comes from life, and “when life is on hold, it kind of puts a damper on things,” he said.
In the meantime, Regan’s Netflix series “Stand Up And Away! With Brian Regan” and his 2017 Netflix special “Nunchucks and Flamethrowers” were streaming online for fans also stuck at home.
While it was nice to not do comedy for a while, Regan said he is glad to be back and getting material ready for that comedy special.
“I tweak it from night to night until shoot day,” he said.
So fans can expect somewhat of an early laugh at that material and few if any cracks about COVID-19, he said.
“I’ve always been fascinated with the purity of comedy. It’s a very bizarre thing,” Regan said.
“It’s weird that humans come up with this thing in their brain and share it with another person and can get a laugh … it’s a bonding experience,” Regan said.
It may also be why laughter has become all the more important in a world buzzing with social distance even while that distance has allowed stand-up comedians to get back on stages across the country more easily than musicians in bands, actors and dancers.
It’s just the comedian and a microphone — “I’ve always loved the simplicity of stand-up comedy,” Regan said.
It’s an art form, but one that works in the favor of comedians these days.
There’s no need for a crew or entourage. A single person, or even two, can get in and out of a place with little-to-no close contact with anyone, Rainsdon said.
Because of that, “it’s just easier to set up a tour for them,” she said.
“It’s easy to accommodate one person. It’s hard to isolate 17 people” (in a band), said Rick Christensen, general manager and talent buyer a Mesa Theater. “These shows have been my kind of bread and butter right now.”
“They show up, the microphone’s on,” he said. It’s as simple as that.
And audiences want to laugh, he said. The Brad Williams shows in August sold out. Before that, the Josh Blue sets did well. Christensen expects the Drew Lynch shows on Nov. 7 also will sell out.
“We actually have a lot more comedy coming in that we haven’t announced yet,” Christensen said.
“I do feel that comedy is something we will see here through the winter,” Rainsdon said with regard to Avalon Theatre and possible the Grand Junction Convention Center.
“People are ready to have a laugh, to do something different and take their minds off the worries we all share,” she said.
The Link LonkOctober 09, 2020 at 01:15PM
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The joke's for you: Stand-up comedians travel light, getting laughs in COVID-19 times - The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel
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