Better late than never, The 2017 UCC 1st round, Opening Night, Show 1

Hello again, comedy fans!  Sorry about the disappearance of my reports.  I hope I can do this year's competition justice.


It feels odd but good to be back at the Idiot Box for the UCC..for a lot of reasons... just saying...

Okay, here we go!  There is a good crowd early, which is always a plus.  It is a nice mix and they all seem eager so that is a definite good sign. Lot of energy from the comics as well, so it seems that this might just be a wild ride.

The lights dim and the energy builds to an almost tangible level.  Steve Lesser hits the mic to welcome everyone and to introduce the show's host, Jennie Stencel.  I have to laugh because Jennie is a bit..  unpredictable as a host, which makes it even better!

And Jennie doesn't disappoint one bit!  The housekeeping spiel, which in Jennie's hands always is a breathtaking fun ride even if she keeps it close to the script, hits sidebars and asides and random thoughts and is even more breathtaking than usual.. and the crowd is eating it up...

And with this laid out for them, the table is set for the first comic of the night, Freddy Valoy! It is always interesting to see how the first comic hits the mic and sets the bar for the comics to come.  Well, Freddy can be listed in the cool and smooth category.  Even if he wasn't funny, his charm would be enough to win over a crowd.  But have no fear, the charm is just an unadvertised bonus.  His writing was very sharp and he showed an amazing skill at playing off the crowd.  He is definitely someone I expect to hear lots more of very soon.

With the crowd definitely warmed up, Benjamin Malone is up next.  Before i go further, I have to add something here.  As soon as he started his routine, in the back of my mind the idea of a comedy voiceover kept popping up. Without actually hearing Benjamin talk, this may not make much sense.  And I mean this in the most appreciative way.  Benjamin is one of those lucky people who has that something extra that makes them very good at the performance part of comedy and makes an impression.  In this case, as you may have guessed, it is his voice.  Even looking beyond that though, his writing is top notch and he delivers it with precision.  It is always cool to see a comic that can set a level and not only nail it and keep it, but can get the audience to not only match it but at times, hitting the stride at the same time.  The comedy and the reactions are just about synched.  Sorry I can't explain that any better right now.  Just trust me that Benjamin was close to a complete package tonight.

Talk about hard to follow! But as the next comic is introduced, I realize that we have the perfect counterpoint, Reid Pegram.  Where Benjamin was more of a controlled  burst of energy, the energy level for Reid and the audience is more like a controlled chaos.  Some of that is planned, but sometimes it even seems to catch Reid off guard.  Those tend to be his better performances. And luckily for him, this was one of his best performances.  Reid is the kind of comic that embodies the what you see is what you get.  Even most of his off kilter observations come across as honest and you can't help to buy into it... even if you may not know what it is.  On top of that, his ability to use pop culture references is second to none.    In tonight's case, Reid's routine is very Borg-like; "Resistance is futile.  You will be assimilated".

I thought that the way the energy of the previous performers would be difficult to harness, for lack of a better word, could be a killer for the next comic.  Again, I shouldn't have worried.  The randomizer once again shows its wiseness and put Tom Stover next in the lineup.  Tom 's routines are a mix of the chaotic and the controlled usually.  Tonight was no different.  In the midst of the strange movements he makes to emphasize parts of his routine and his slightly over the top 'Aw, shucks! Rednecked' material it is easy to overlook just how sharp he is as a comic overall.  He makes Nascar speed-like pacing and timing seem deceptively easy to the audience.  If nothing else, that is enough for him to win me over as an audience member AND as a fellow comic.  There is always so much more, though.  Tonight it was a routine that was more personal than what I was used to.  If you know what to look for, you got a lot of the comic and the person.  This is definitely a case where 2-for-1 is definitely a great deal. Not sure if this will make sense, but not only did he make me laugh, he made me smile too.

Up next is one of the comics that always makes me smile, but I was kind of worried.  Jackie Flannigan is usually a more laid back comic.  I wasn't sure how she would play in the swirl of energy the evening has become.  Before I go on, it is hard to plan a perfect storm moment in a competition where you find out the lineup perhaps 15 minutes before the show starts.  There are way too many variables even after the show starts to account for.  When one happens, you just need to recognize and then sit back and watch in awe.  This brings me back to Jackie.  Tonight, Jackie was more aggressive in her performance (in a positive way).  It was her turned up to 11.  In a way, she might not be able to explain, she let the energy take her and she rode it perfectly.  One joke that she did was in a format that is very hit or miss for me; it is basically giving random takes on a single line ("Like a bulldog..."  "Like a bulldog...").  Even if done well, they usually leave me cold quickly.  I will say that I was very happy when she moved on from this, but only because I was hurting a lot from laughing.  Not only was it well written, it was delivered wickedly. I was expecting Scooter and got Animal instead.  This is beyond a good thing.

At some point, you figure someone would take the mic and try to rein in the wild energies, and that comic would be Wolfgang Hunter. It is interesting and cool to see the general reaction to the name alone.  Naw, no pressure at this point, right?  Wolfgang jumps right in like it was the simplest, most natural thing in the world.  He did rein in the wildness of the room's energy, but left lots of energy to play with.  Another pretty sharp writer, he gave himself lots of room to make the most of his performance.  He is another comic that brings a depth of charm to his material that draws you in and makes it nay impossible not to root for him.  As such, his ability to make a connection is impressive and I can't wait to see how he develops/polishes it as his career career continues.

And again, I must interject an observation before getting into the next comic's performance.  Timing and pacing are two skills that make for any comedy, essentially.  How a comic masters them can give you idea of how strong a comic they can be or are.  The next comic is the one that I almost always think of when the topics come up or I tend to use as an example of what the terms mean to me.  Now that I have said that...

Greensboro's premier Sit Down Comic, Leo Hodson takes the stage.  Leo goes ahead and gets rid of the 800 lb gorilla and makes a wheelchair joke to start his set and there is nary a bit of nervous laughter to be had.  There are so many things you can talk about as a strength for Leo, but another one became very obvious quickly.  In an intimate venue like this, Leo's use of facial expression and body language is devastating.  This is especially true when he makes wheelchair related jokes, when the audience gives a response that he uses to twist the expectations around on them and, strangely enough, when he talks about candles.  Another thing that just really hit me tonight was how good he used the motion of his wheelchair as a bridge between, and within, different bits.  He uses the chair the way John Madden used the telestrator (only much better).

The next comic to take the stage is Nate Bacon and he brings back a more controlled, deliberate energy to the room.  The writing was good and that elevated  Nate's performance.  While seeming a bit nervous, he did a great job of using the nerves to give his material just a little bit of an added edge.  He is a comic that really has a world of possibilities to work with as he hones his talent.  There is a lot to like in his material and was fairly fluid going from one style in one bit to another style in the next bit.  He is another comic that I expect to hear more of in the future!

Following Nate is Alex Garretson.  Here I have to note that the comic who did the most amazing control in raising the rooms energy did so with an almost completely deadpan routine.  I mean, doesn't it seem that a routine that involved no swings in energy or emotion and very close to a monotone delivery would be lost at this point?  Yeah, I was wrong too.  Using razor sharp writing, Swiss clock level timing and blistering use of the few changes in inflection or volume, Alex has the audience enthralled, not sure there is a better word than that to describe it.  It was almost like a contest where the audience had to find the difference or change, and they were all overjoyed when they did.  And there was Alex throwing down the Easter eggs with a magicians touch and then leading them to each one.  Not only did I laugh, I smiled a lot and as the routine ended, I was trying to applaud while also picking my jaw up off of the floor.

One comic left to go, and what a way to end the show as Cabell Wilkinson hits the stage! Brash and brassy is the way to end the night on the right note.  Cabell is one of the most charismatic people I have ever met and she uses it to perfection.  She has the audience well in hand within the first few words.  I honestly believe that when she is really on, you could watch a recording of performing, but without the sound and you could still catch the flavor her routine and even catching the hooks and payoffs.  She is larger than life in the best possible way as she goes through her routines.  And like Benjamin, she has the added benefit of a voice that sticks with you; when you remember her bits or routines, you hear them in her voice.  Again, I find my smiling as her routine came to an end.  A great way to end the show, indeed!

The lights come up and the ballots are quickly collected.  After a couple more minutes, the lights go down again and Jennie hits the mic once more.  And what a wonder it is to behold!  This the Jennie from the start of the show, only moreso.  This is as wild and breathtaking as it was earlier, but now, it also becomes very personal.  And since when she gets going, her inner censor just closes up shop for the night, all bets are off and essentially, anything and everything is fair game.  I am sure the 19 year old woman won't need TOO much therapy, but I am pretty sure the friends who are with her tonight will be bringing this up for years to come and she will still blush every single time.  The young woman was not the only person who caught Jennie's attention. And that as much as anything is why I love it when Jennie hosts.  Especially in this space, it seems like a bunch of friends hanging out and there is that one friend who always ends up cracking everyone up.

Steve enters and the lights go up, and after some really funny banter and little jabs at each other, he gives the results to Jennie to announce.

As a reminder of how this works, a comic can move on in one of two ways, audience vote or comic vote.  In both cases, the comics are voted on in descending order (1 being funniest, most liked, etc down to, in this case, 10).  Comics can't vote for themselves.  The top 4 comics in the audience vote move directly on to the 2nd Round.  The comic receiving the most comic votes and is not in the audience top 4 moves on to the Wild Card Round, with another chance to make the 2nd Round.

Got all that?  Good, because it is time to reveal the five comics moving on.

Going on to the Wild Card Round by comic vote:

 JACKIE FLANNIGAN

Going on to the 2nd Round by audience vote: 

FREDDIE VALOY

REID PEGRAM

LEO HODSON

ALEX GARRETTSON

Congratulations to tonight's winners!!!

And as always a big thank you to the other great comics tonight:

BENJAMIN MALONE

TOM STOVER

WOLFGANG HUNTER

NATE BACON

CABELL WILKINSON

And remember, go and support all of our comics when you get the chance.  Support the local comedy scene, local comics and local comedy venues, like the Idiot Box!