“An introverted writer walks into a crowded comedy show alone…”
I don’t know what the punchline is.
I think I may be the punchline.
It takes me three times to find a seat that’s not taken, and by the time Will Hardesty, tonight’s host, takes the stage, it’s standing room only. “The Young, Dumb, and Full of Comedy Show,” produced by Raanan Hershberg, features a mix of both local and regional comedians every other Friday at The Bard’s Town.
Hardesty polls the crowd: more than half of the people here have been to one of these shows. Everyone here seems to know each other, hence my problem finding a place to sit; almost every person who walks into the dimly-lit room is greeted with high-fives and hugs. I haven’t been to a comedy show in Louisville in a long time, but I’ve been interviewing local performers for a couple of days. They keep telling me that comedy in Louisville is a “scene.” Now I’m seeing that scene.
And at the heart of that scene is The Bard’s Town.
The Bard’s Town comedy scene isn’t just providing stage time for stand-up performers; it’s also hosting both long- and short-form improv troupes, an improv school, and comedy theatre ensembles.
In addition to the eight stand-up comedians at tonight’s show, there’s also an “on the spot” contest. Hardesty brings three comedians– Jay Cox, Patrick Passafuime, and Sean Smith– on stage at the beginning of the show, and the audience shouts out prompts. At the end of the show, the comedians perform three minutes on what they were prompted to write about. The audience then votes by applause, and the winner is invited back next week to defend his “on the spot” victory. This week’s themes: Sriracha, eyelashes, and breastfeeding bandages (yeah, we’re not going to touch that one).
One of those performers, Sean Smith, is a local comedian who’s been doing stand-up for five years. He says, “The Bard’s Town gives comedians a chance to be as creative as they’d like to be. When performing at comedy clubs, comedians often form their set to be noticed by the person booking the club. That can cause comedians to be ‘safer’ on stage and not take as many risks in finding their own voice. The Bard’s Town has no booker, which allows comedians room to grow and try new things.”
The crowd at tonight’s “Young, Dumb, and Full of Comedy” show is a discriminating bunch. Often stand-up comedy crowds seem to laugh on command, as if they paid to laugh, damn it, so laugh they will. Not these folks. When the jokes fall flat, it’s crickets in here.
But Smith doesn’t have to worry about crickets. His bit on “eyelashes” wins the “on the spot” contest; he’s genuinely the funniest person in the room, with the possible exception of Hardesty. (I’m still chuckling over his “too soon” jokes about Steve Jobs. It’s impossible to do justice to a stand-up comedian’s joke on paper. Suffice to say he assumed Jobs would’ve made a provision in Apple technology that when he died, so would all things Apple. The punchline was: “I’m dead, and now you have a brick.”).
Smith says, “The Bard’s Town has increased the amount of stage time around Louisville so much. Louisville now has an open mic almost every day of the week, including Sundays. To a person practicing stand-up, you really can’t ask much more than having more places and audiences to perform for. It’s also given comedians a new place to hang out. We like new things.”
Patrick Wensink of Project Improv likewise waxes appreciative of the effect the Bard’s Town has had on the local comedy scene. “The Bard’s Town has been Project Improv’s best friend,” says Wensink. “We had a long-standing gig at a more traditional comedy club that charged pretty hefty door prices, and it wasn’t a great experience. Our shows at The Bard’s Town, on the other hand, are free and it makes all the difference. We play to full rooms most nights and have enthusiastic audiences there.”
Wensink adds, “On a personal level, I enjoy working with the owners, Scot and Doug, so much that I’ve scheduled book readings there, and they put on a play I wrote at their ‘Ten-Tucky” Festival of Ten Minute Plays.’ Essentially, we’d be blood brothers with the Bard’s Town if we could, but Project Improv gets woozy at the sight of blood.”
Project Improv has been around since 1999, making it one of the oldest improv troupes in the city. Its longevity, says Wensink, is one of the keys to Project Improv’s success. “The original members have all moved on to other things, but the group has constantly evolved,” says Wensink.
Wensink explains. “Project Improv is friends with many other improv groups and comedians and frequently try to schedule performances together. There doesn’t seem to be a competitive nature to the scene…either that or people are just talking shit behind my back. Either way, I’m happy.”
Another one of the oldest improv groups in Louisville has also found a sometimes home at The Bard’s Town. The Louisville Improvisors are probably best known as the hosts of the yearly Improvapalooza, a twelve year old event that brings together local, regional, and national improv acts, including members of Second City, The Groundlings from L.A., actors, writers, and directors from SNL, The Simpsons, and The Daily Show. But lately the Improvisors have done more than showcase their own comedy and bring recognizable faces in improv to town; they’ve been raising up a new batch of improvisers.
Chris Anger, co-founder of the Improvisors, held the most recent Louisville Improvisors Training Camp at the Bard’s Town. “When we were looking for a new teaching space we immediately asked Scot and Doug about using The Bard’s Town and they said yes,” says Anger. “And when we wanted to do a showcase performance for our last group of students we already had the perfect venue. It’s been a great fit for us.”
The Training Camp isn’t just about training the next wave of members for the comedy scene, Anger says. “I think it’s a great tool for teaching trust, commitment and how to work together, which are not just the basic tools of improv but would, I believe, be beneficial to anyone. One of our goals from the beginning has been to introduce as many people as possible to improv and take away some of ‘scare’ factor and the classes have really helped with that.”
The next camp beings in January, again at The Bard’s Town. Says Anger, “One of the first comedy shows I ever did I ever was in the back of a restaurant in Berkeley, so The Bard’s Town fits into a long history and tradition of giving performers an opportunity to practice their craft. Plus, Doug and Scot are both theater guys so they understand that need better than anyone and are doing a great job of filling it.”
Of course, The Bard’s Town is doing much more than just serving the comedy community. When a friend and I went to see Le Petomane Theatre Ensemble’s “5 Things” back in September, we came downstairs after the show to hear gorgeous strings music emanating from the lounge. It was Classical Revolution, the monthly classical jam fest. And as we listened to the last bits of the Classical Revolution, the Louisville Comedy Underground was loading into the theater that Le Petomane had just vacated. Anger’s Training Camp had held class earlier that day, and the Comedy and Conjuring Cabaret had had an open rehearsal.
Some people may hear the words “Louisville’s comedy scene” and think it’s exclusive and off-putting. But the diversity of offerings at The Bard’s Town opens that scene up to anyone just looking for a beer and a few laughs.
–Melissa Chipman
FIND MORE COMEDY
Young, Dumb, and Full of Comedy
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And Louisville is home to one (if not THE) longest running all-comedy booking agency in the world: TSM Artists, Inc.
I had no idea, Adam! That’s really interesting. Wheels are turning for another article or blog post. Thanks!
You can’t beat that show for the price and some of the comedians to me are better than some of the more established comedians I’ve seen at the Caravan. Raanan, Sean, Patrick, Will (of course), Darren, and Tyler are all very funny people with a lot of potential. Good write up.
Really nice article Melissa, I think you did a good job of capturing a bright and shining aspect of the Louisville Comedy Scene. I really enjoy that show because you never know what kind of funny you are going to get but you always get funny. I look forward to future articles about our scene.