crowd work – The Comedy Bureau

Pick of the Day: Surrounded: Crowdwork in the Round (in NYC) 3/9

February 27, 2023

crowd work, mike falzone, new york comedy, stand up comedy, the stand

For quite some time now, comedian multi-hyphenate Mike Falzone has encircled performers with audience members and prohibited them from doing any prepared material and resorting only to crowd work on his creation, Surrounded. It has been a delightful monthly installment at The Hollywood Improv, but is going to be touching down in NYC next week.

That’s right, there will be a special rearranging of the Main Room at The Stand in NYC, probably unlike the club has ever had and the crowd will be as close and on top of the comedians as possibly can be. It’s a special, unique crowd work show (especially because Mike brings such a positive energy to his crowd work show) that feels more like a communal experience rather than being singled out for something you’re wearing by a comic who forgot their next joke.

Surrounded is set for The Stand on Thurs. Mar. 9th at 8PM and 10PM and you can (and should) get tickets here & here respectively for $19.72 ($15 plus fees) a pop.

Pick of the Day: What’s Your Problem, Sir? with Ever Mainard (in LA) 1/12 & 1/26

December 29, 2022

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crowd work, ever mainard, los angeles comedy, lyric hyperion

Two things we’re definitely looking forward to in 2023: the re-rebirth of Lyric Hyperion in Silverlake and way more Ever Mainard. The treasured venue is back on track to be more of what it was right before lockdown thanks to one Sean Casey and part of that will include Ever doing their improvised/crowd-work show that’s always such a superb thrill to be a part of.

Mainard’s penchant for being present and chasing tangents is one of the more enthralling and dynamic things we get to see out here in the LA comedy scene and an opportunity to see that for an hour should absolutely not be missed.

So, on Thurs. Jan. 12th & Jan. 26th (and then every 2nd Thursday after that) at 7:30PM, Mainard will take command of the newly refurbished stage at Lyric Hyperion to round the audience in the best type of chaos. Go get your tickets here right now for $12 a pop.

Pick of the Day: Birthday Double Crowd Work Show with Todd Barry & Natasha Leggero 3/26

March 23, 2021

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crowd work, natasha leggero, todd barry, virtual comedy

Whenever Todd Barry is embarking on his crowd work shows, it’s always worth dropping whatever you have for the night and going. Some of our favorite roast moments come from Natasha Leggero roasting couples on stage or on a podcast with her husband Moshe Kasher.

Barry and Leggero together (along with special guests) should be truly something special and riotous, especially over Zoom (rather than squinting to see who they are talking about in the audience). They’ll be doing a very, very special Birthday Double (Todd and Natasha have the same birthday 3/26) Crowd Work Show via Nowhere Comedy on, of course, Mar. 26th at 5PM PT/8PM ET.

Tickets are $20-$50 and you can (and very, very much should) go get them here.

Pick of the Day: What’s Your Problem, Sir? with Ever Mainard 1/30

January 14, 2021

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crowd work, ever mainard, solo show

The freewheelin’ spirit of Ever Mainard makes their comedy dynamic and enthralling and it’s definitely something we dearly miss seeing live in person.

Thus, we’re really looking forward to the exclusive virtual show they’re doing come Sat. Jan. 30th where it’ll be a deep dive into the eternal question, “What’s your problem?” Mainard is set for this “wild night of vulnerable comedy” that is very likely the bit of the catharsis that many of us need as we can only shout at our walls in quarantine for only so long.

What’s Your Problem, Sir? with Ever Mainard is set to live-stream on Sat. Jan. 30th at 6PM PT/9PM ET. Tickets are going for the nice price of $5 and you can (and should) get them here.

Moshe Kasher’s Crowd Surfing Vol. 1 Really Captures the Joy of Crowd Work

January 24, 2020

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comedy album, comedy dynamics, crowd surfing, crowd work, moshe kasher, stand up comedy

In stand-up comedy, so much of crowd work is dependent on how quick a comedian can be on their feet. There is also a great deal of finesse involved as well. How perceptive one comedian can be from moment-to-moment can be the difference between unraveling into utter chaos and delightfully riding right up to that line.

Moshe Kasher takes great care to not only be as quick as can be with his razor sharp wit and ribbing audience members just the right amount on his new album Crowd Surfing Vol. 1, but he achieves his goal of making it engaging and captivating for us listeners that weren’t at this particular taping. He succeeds in capturing that lightning in a bottle that is stand-up crowd work by letting audience members tell stories and then slickly threading his commentary throughout. It’s a clever move on Moshe’s part by letting audience stories sort of anchor the “crowd work experience” and then cutting loose with his magnificent blend of high and low brow references, phrasing, and graceful delivery/cadence.

Best of all with Moshe Kasher: Crowd Surfing Vol. 1: A Crowd Work Experience, you can enjoy hearing some truly top shelf riffing with the crowd and have zero worries of being made fun of.

Moshe Kasher: Crowd Surfing Vol. 1: A Crowd Work Experience is available now wherever you get/listen to/stream your comedy albums.

Jay Larson Is Going on a “Mostly Crowd Work Tour”

August 29, 2018

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comedy tour, crowd work, jay larson

In this current wave of popularity that crowd work style stand-up comedy is enjoying (Todd Barry’s Crowd Work Tour, Big Jay Oakerson’s What’s Your F@#king Deal?, Judah Friedlander’s America Is The Greatest Country in the United States), Jay Larson is a comic whose crowd work you ought to get in on.

Larson is already fantastic at being off-the-cuff and riffing in his normal stand-up and whenever he interacts with the crowd, his questions are so off-beat and refreshing (just listen/watch any of his specials/albums over the years).

Dates and cities are listed above on the lovely poster by Geoff Tice and you can (and should) get your tickets starting this Friday, August 31st at https://www.jaylarsoncomedy.com/tour/.

Judah Friedlander Holds Up a Funhouse, Crowdwork-Fueled, Mirror to America with His Special “America Is The Greatest Country in the U.S.”

November 2, 2017

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america is the greatest country in the united states, comedy cellar, comedy special, crowd work, judah friedlander, netflix, stand up

This week, Judah Friedlander’s latest hour of stand-up dropped in the form of what looks like Netflix’s most gritty looking stand-up special yet.

America Is The Greatest Country in the U.S., like Dave Attell’s Road Work, is a compilation of several different performances, which gives you a true sense of what watching Friedlander on any given night might be like. You can see his cool wits about him over a plethora of nights pre- and post- 2016 election as he exquisitely does crowd work in NYC’s hallowed comedy club, The Comedy Cellar.

The thesis suggested by the title allows for Judah to satirically point out what makes America #1, spinning our issues of gun control, healthcare, immigration, etc. into positives. Taping it at The Comedy Cellar also brings in a very diverse crowd, often a bunch of international tourists that Judah uses to his advantage when pointing out “why” America, once again, is the best. That being said, Judah does have a few choice digs against Trump that don’t quite break from the premise.

So, when get you chance, be a patriot for once and give Judah Friedlander: America Is The Greatest Country in the United States a watch.

Here’s a Trailer for “Big Jay Oakerson’s What’s Your F@%king Deal?!” Now Streaming at Seeso

March 17, 2016

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andy kindler, big jay oakerson, brody stevens, colin quinn, crowd work, gilbert gottfried, hannibal buress, james adomian, kurt metzger, no material, seeso, stand up, what's your f@%king deal

No material and all crowd work was the order for the evenings of Big Jay Oakerson’s new Seeso series What’s Your F@%king Deal?

Given who they got for the show, it seems like a real good time. Also, note that you don’t have to worry about being talked to as this has already been recorded.

Just check the show’s massive line-up:

Hannibal Buress
Colin Quinn
Gilbert Gottfried
Joe DeRosa
Jessica Kirson
Andy Kindler
Mark Normand
Wil Sylvince
James Adomian
Kurt Metzger
Bonnie McFarlane
Sean Patton
Dave Smith
Dan Soder
Mike Britt
Mike Vecchione
Luis J Gomez
Lynne Koplitz
Brody Stevens
Tone Bell
Ari Shaffir
Sherrod Small
Judy Gold
Rich Vos
Aaron Berg
Bert Kreischer
Yamaneika Saunders
Monroe Martin
Nate Bargatze
Jermaine Fowler
Ardie Fuqua

Then, get a taste of it in this trailer.

After all of that, you can go get Seeso, if you don’t already have it, and start streaming it.

Todd Barry’s Crowd Work Tour Comedy Special Out Mar. 22nd

March 14, 2014

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comedy special, crowd work, louis ck, todd barry

Todd Barry’s Crowd Work Tour Comedy Special Out Mar. 22nd

Next week, Todd Barry will release his comedy special cut up from his tour where he did nothing but crowd work, appropriately titled Todd Barry’s Crowd Work Tour. The concept is simple, but amazing as we saw one night at Largo months ago. Also, note that a modern master at catching lightning in a bottle, Lance Bangs, directed it.

So, make sure you go to LouisCK.com on Mar. 22nd to pick up for, you guessed it, $5.

Louis C.K. To Release Todd Barry Crowd Work Tour Off His Website

January 29, 2014

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crowd work, daily show, louis ck, todd barry

Louis C.K. To Release Todd Barry Crowd Work Tour Off His Website

We should have also mentioned that while on The Daily Show, Louis C.K. announced that The Todd Barry Crowd Work Tour will be released off a LouisCK.com in March.

January isn’t even over yet and C.K. is poised to be on top of everything again with his movie, Louie coming back, and now with releasing The Todd Barry Crowd Work Tour.

Patrice O’Neal’s “Unreleased” Available Now as Digital Download

August 23, 2013

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comedy album, crowd work, patrice o'neal

Patrice O’Neal’s “Unreleased” Available Now as Digital Download

The latest posthumous album to be released from Patrice O’Neal clearly titled “Unreleased” featuring some of his renowned crowd work is slated to come out as a physical CD in the beginning of October, but, if you just want to do a digital download for $10, you can get it from Patrice’s site right now.