At 8:00 p.m. tonight at the Lakeshore Theater (3175 N. Broadway), MySpace's "Secret Stand Up" is putting Comedian of Comedy Brian Posehn in front of your face! No money need exchange hands. Simply bring in a printout of your MySpace profile, per these instructions, with one ticket available per person. The show is all ages and would be followed up nicely with a trip to Chipotle, which, unfortunately, is not giving away free MySpace burritos.
The Montreal Just for Laughs Festival folks are back in town and ready to see some great Chicago-style stand-up comedy! What does this mean for you as a person in Chicago who enjoys laughing? Well, we'll tell ya: not ONE, but TWO exemplary showcases of the best and brightest currently in this fair city of ours. Tonight, March 7, at 9 p.m., the Lincoln Lodge, 4008 N. Lincoln, plays host to a "rapid-fire showcase style format with a dozen of your favorite local comics doing their best stuff for 'Les Habitants'!"
Tomorrow, March 8, at 8:30 p.m., mosey down to the Edge Comedy Club at the Chicago Center for the Performing Arts, 777 N. Green St., for another jam-packed showcase, featuring Mike Cody, Michael Palascak, Jena Friedman, Brady Novak, Michael Sanchez, John Markham, Bryan Berrey, Shay Shay, Meechie, Joe Kilgallon, Dave Odd, and Mike Wiley. Free and all-ages! Stick around for the regularly scheduled 10:30 p.m. show at regular price, titled "The Most Diverse Comedy Show Ever!", featuring Prashanth Venkataramanujam, Mike Lee, Mark Nabong, Adam Guerino, Drew Michael, Jena Friedman, Meechie, Michelle Thompson, Dave Odd, Joe Fernandez, and Michael Sanchez.
TBS, in conjunction with Montreal's Just for Laughs (JFL) festival, has confirmed the launch of a new comedy festival to be staged in Chicago during the summer of 2009.
As stated in the Hollywood Reporter, "The Chicago festival will become JFL's 'flagship comedy event in the U.S.,' said JFL president Gilbert Rozon.
"Besides a TBS special hosted by Ellen DeGeneres, it will feature a series of stand-up concerts by top-name comedians, improv and sketch shows, including a collaboration with the famed Second City comedy troupe in the Windy City, Latino and urban comedy specials, as well as a film component."
Not even a peep, you guys? No one knew anything about this? If so, do you have any more details?
Former Senior Producer of Talent for the HBO Aspen Comedy Festival Kirsten Ames has lots of nice things to say about Chicago comedy talent.
"Chicago is probably my favorite spot to find new talent for all the things that I do and people that I work for. When I worked for HBO's Aspen Comedy Festival I brought out TJ Miller, Kevinda, Misled, Deon Cole, The Ragdolls, and Becky Drysdale." Ames also currently manages Thomas Middleditch.
Ames is coming to Chicago and Playground Productions is presenting her "State of the Comedy Industry" seminar on Saturday, February 16th, 2008, from 12-2 at Gill Park (825 W Sheridan Rd). Stand-ups, sketch groups, writers, and comedy hangers-on are invited to soak up the comedy bizz wisdom of from someone who has worked with Eddie Izzard, Billy Connelly, Margaret Cho, and Sandra Bernhard. Send her an e-mail to make arrangements for your $35 ticket.
Topics covered will include:
- The challenges and opportunities in the comedy industry
- What the industry is looking for
- What you can be doing now, to be "ready" later
- What you need to know and who you need to know
- How can you better your chances of getting noticed when you don't live in LA or New York?
Ames is currently a producer with Levity Entertainment (producers, "Live At Gotham") and has her own management company in New York.
The Bastion is very happy to announce the safe and healthy arrival of a one Mr. Colin Spencer Flannery! Blerds and VLR member Sean Flannery and his wife Jessica gave birth to a bouncing baby boy this past Wednesday. He clocks in at a robust 7' 12" lbs., and 20.5 inches! That's almost two feet long!
Sean gave us the brief run-down of events: "I received a call from Jessica after a routine doctor's appointment, saying they were going to induce labor. I was on my way to a company Christmas party with an open bar. We dodged a bullet. None of us would want that call to happen after I've been screaming to the guys in the mail room for five hours on free booze."
The boys have been keeping tabs on the details live on air, which you will be able to hear soon via the magic of podcast, or live, if you're like the Bastion and take an aural break at work from 3 to 4 p.m. Tuesday-Friday.
Local woman Nailah Franklin, a friend of our friend, SpitFire girl Hattie Snider, has been missing for a week now. Nailah's sister Marina Franklin is also a comic in New York, as it happens, and aside from all of that, she's a Chicago woman who has possibly encountered some danger, and her family and loved ones would appreciate the public's help in looking for her.
According to Chicagoist, Nailah, who lives in University Village, "filed a police report last week stating that she was receiving threatening phone calls from an acquaintance." Her car has been found in Hammond, Indiana, but still, there is no sign of Nailah.
Click here for a big poster with more info, and contact the Chicago Police Department if you have any information about where Nailah might be.
Woah! The Apiary informs us that: "Hometown comic John Mulaney, of "Oh, Hello" fame, got the call up from triple-A to make his debut appearance on Conan O'Brien tonight. TONIGHT. In a remarkably low-key bcc'd email yesterday, Mulaney writes, "The other guest is Nicholas Cage. He and I are old friends (long story) so it should be a lot of fun to pal around backstage. Happy Valentine's Day." Is there anything sweeter in life than the rare moment when opportunity and preparation intersect? Break a leg, Mulaney."
Congrats, John!!!
And a video from when he was visiting us this past summer:
We're absolutely goofy here in the Bastion office with the news we heard this morning: ZACH GALIFIANAKIS will be headlining next Tuesday's People Under the Stares show at the 100-person capacity Weeds on Dayton. You might recall that BONNIE 'PRINCE' BILLY is also going to be there. Who else? Chicago's own and beloved Kumail Nanjiani and Prescott Tolk. Did the Bastion secure their press pass yet? Oh, of course not. Is the first show already sold out? Yep. There maaay be a second show added though, so we'll keep you posted.
We thought it was a joke, too, but it's confirmed: Bonnie "Prince" Billy, a.k.a. William Oldham a.k.a. our favorite chanteur for our most dark + melancholy times, is trying his hand at the old stand-em-up comedy... People are talking, and getting geared up to see yet another version of ol' Billy December 19 at the People Under the Stares show, produced by Drag City Records and the Empty Bottle. We tried to snag a few quotes from him (haha!), but no go, says Dan over at Drag City. That's okay; we still love you, and will support all of your endeavors and artistic paths.
Kumail's on the bill, too. Come see him fresh from slaughtering at the NYC Aspen callbacks this past week.
At 8:00 p.m. tonight at the Lakeshore Theater (3175 N. Broadway), MySpace's "Secret Stand Up" is putting Comedian of Comedy Brian Posehn in front of your face! No money need exchange hands. Simply bring in a printout of your MySpace profile, per these instructions, with one ticket available per person. The show is all ages and would be followed up nicely with a trip to Chipotle, which, unfortunately, is not giving away free MySpace burritos.
Former Senior Producer of Talent for the HBO Aspen Comedy Festival Kirsten Ames has lots of nice things to say about Chicago comedy talent.
Local woman 
