The tiniest vaudeville show in Los Angeles raised curtains on their debut night on Monday, January 26th. The petit extravaganza – due to recur every last Monday of each month – was hosted by the ever impressive Joel Spence (Upright Citizens Brigade, The Thrilling Adventure and Supernatural Suspense Hour) and the lovely Romi Dames who will next be seen on the hit HBO show, Collin’s Life.
TINIEST OF INTROS
The night began with a dry, minute explanation by Joel Spence:
“Tiny Vaudeville is a variety show with something different: variety.”
Romi added, “This variety show has so much variety that it has “a real British person” in it.”
The show commenced with a lineup of anything but tiny talent. Here are some of the highlights:
TINY DRAMA QUEENERY
Dave Foley (Kids in the Hall) and Samm Levine (Freaks And Geeks) were comic act ‘Foley And Levine’ – a duo dedicated to reenacting famous comic moments in history. That night they were Abbott and Costello performing the classic bit ‘Who’s On First.’ Foley and Levine passive aggressively and sometimes just flat out aggressively fought over playing Costello. They stumbled through the act accidentally saying lines at the same time or sabotaging the other as Costello by saying Abbott’s line then immediately following up with Costello’s, i.e. “I’m asking you who’s on first that’s the man’s name that’s Who’s name?” …
Dave Foley eventually got pissed, threw down the mike and stormed off.
TINY REINTERPRETATIONS
Christopher Hitchens (played by James Adomian) dropped by to review Aesop’s Fables:
Snippets:
(Re: Fox & Grapes) “Nearly all grapes on the vine are sour to the taste, so here the fox is maligned for a correct assessment that any competent winemaker would corroborate.”
(Re: Goose with the Golden Eggs) “Here Aesop recoils in fear of taxonomy, of zoology, indeed of all scientific investigation. The only way we do understand the anatomical workings of geese or any other living beings is precisely because we have dissected their corpses.”
(Re: Tortoise & Hare) “And so we might correctly say that slow and steady does not win the race except when the faster character is removed from the narrative by means of an arbitrary literary trick. Aesop might have made the same point by having the hare explode or turn to dust for no reason.”
TINY MAGIC
Magician Derek Hughes pulled down his underwear revealing “the missing card” in the crack of his ass.
TINY STRIPPERS
Members of the RSC (played by Mark Gagliardi and Kirsten Vangsness) performed scenes from comic strip, Hagar the Horrible.
TINY READING OF TOMORROW’S LITERATI
Dave Foley, Samm Levine, and Kirsten Vangsness read selections from stories written by kids.
Tiny Vaudeville is created and curated by the folks of 826LA who describe their show thusly:
Each lively show will run approximately ninety minutes and feature any number of the following: live music, short films, stand-up and sketch comedy, novelty acts, lectures, slide shows, and more. Between acts, a name actor will present original writing by 826LA students. With such endless possibilities, Tiny Vaudeville is a unique theatrical experience.
Shows are 18+ and will be held on the last Monday of every month at the Echoplex in Echo Park: 1154 Glendale Blvd, Los Angeles, California 90026. All money goes to support 826LA’s free writing and tutoring programs for Los Angeles students, ages 6–18.
For more information, please visit the Tiny Vaudeville website: www.826la.org/tinyvaudeville
- by Paris Lia
Tags: comedy, tiny vaudeville
Music
Film & TV
