One of the apartment building on my way to the bus stop is being renovated. The Chicago Common Brick company clearly supplied the bricks.
Maybe I should buy a new business name – the Common Consulting Company?
Am waiting to see Baby Wants Candy, the improvised musical at Second City’s Apollo Theatre (their 3rd theatre in Chicago).
I miscalculated and didn’t have an 8pm show to see (BWC is at 1030), so I saw some stand up in the Studio downstairs – about 30 or 40 seats. I shared the room with 9 other audience. Just like Scriptless at the Bridge all those years ago.
The host tried too hard. The first comic did “white folk do this” stuff which wasn’t even clever.
The second comic was a woman, Erica Edwards, and did pretty damn well considering. She mostly talked about growing up in a white neighbourhood, and being single, and her white friends hooking her up with inappropriate men (homeless, dwarves, etc) simply because of their race.
The third guy, Brian Babylon, was very good for such a tiny room. He was a lot less self conscious, had an openness and vulnerability about him. He didn’t take it too seriously. It wasn’t so much his material as his presence I think. I have seen some crappy stand up, and he saved it!!!
After the show he found me and told me he was trying to make me laugh. I was in fact laughing, just little giggles. His stuff was around also growing up in a middle class family in a white neighbourhood, about sex (ask me about the dolphin move) and Michael Jackson hairdos.
I am blowing my nose every 4 seconds tonight, and coughing every 12 seconds, I probably should be at home in bed (of course it’s too hot to be at home in bed). So my laughter was a tad subdued because of that.
I told him that he was great (I said what I just wrote). I suppose that’s what happens when there are less than a dozen people in the room, and you can actually see them all!
