milwaukeecomedy.com
As always, comedy continues. It’s nice to know that on a week so impossibly bursting at the seams with holiday show openings. there’s still comedy. Good, old standard stage comedy that may or may not necessarily have anything to do with the holidays at all.
This week, the Milwaukee Rep opens its annual staging of A Christmas Carol. This year’s Scrooge is John Smoots. UW-Parkside is opening its staging of It’s A Wonderful Life: Live Radio Play this Friday. One day before that there’s Miracle On 34th Street at Sunset Playhouse. One need not go that far away to experience local holiday fare. There are no less than TWO David Sedaris-written holiday classics being staged: Theatre Gigante is hosting a one-man Holidays on Ice show that opens on Friday. Theatrical Tendencies is opening Santaland Diaries with Joe Mantello on the same day. There’s a brand-new Jason Powell show opening on Thursday. He’s written Purely Elfish Reasons for the Alchemist. December 5th, there’s a new Liz Shipe piece: Upon a Midnight Clear that’s being staged at the Brumder Mansion.
That’s seven holiday shows all opening up on the same weekend. Seven. It makes me feel good that at least two of those are both new AND written by talented local people. But it also makes me feel really good to know that there’s standard comedy making it to the stage this weekend as well.
Every month The Grand Comedy Hour features six local and regional comedians doing their stuff. From the promo copy: “The Grand Comedy Hour is not your typical "club style" showcase. We hand pick every comedian and work hard to put together a fun and casual comedy experience that everyone can enjoy.”
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There you have it: Four comedians lovingly handcrafting their comedy and then gracefully shoving it into the basement of an old mall on Wisconsin Avenue. This month, host Steve Breese welcomes Tyler Menz, Greg Bach, Phil Davidson and Ton Johnson.
The show starts at 8 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 5 at the Arcade Theatre at The Underground Collaborative, 161 W. Wisconsin Ave. Tickets are only $10.