Comedy

Jim Gaffigan starts Pabst Theater run on funny, familiar note

December 30, 2014

Monday night marked the eighth consecutive year in which veteran comedian Jim Gaffigan bestowed his unique construct of everyman-isms upon Milwaukee. By this point, the comic’s annual post-holiday run of shows—...

The 15 best comedy shows we saw in 2014

Tyler Maas

December 29, 2014

Today marks the beginning of Jim Gaffigan's three-night run of shows at Pabst Theater. For going on eight years, the food-obsessed comedian's late December appearances at the venue have served as the unofficial...

Johnny Beehner brings his homegrown humor out on the road

Tyler Maas

December 3, 2014

It's a quiet November afternoon in a residential neighborhood tucked between high-traffic causeways in Waukesha.Inside his two-story suburban homestead, Johnny Beehner holds his infant son in one arm while ...

Goodnight Milwaukee Show and Tall Boys combine comic forces

Tyler Maas

November 26, 2014

Saturday night, live and localized late night talk show The Goodnight Milwaukee Show and the Tall Boys improv troupe will perform together in an instance of multifaceted comedic collaboration. While both groups...

Christopher Schmidt wins Battle Royale IV title

Tyler Maas

November 24, 2014

Almost two weeks ago, approximately 30 comedians from Milwaukee (and a few from Madison) stacked their material against one another while participating in Caste Of Killers' fourth annual Battle Royale. After th...

Battle Royale finalists weigh in on title chances

Tyler Maas

November 19, 2014

Following last week's trifecta of Caste Of Killers Battle Royale IV preliminary rounds that found a field of nearly 30 of Milwaukee (and Madison for some reason)'s finest and funniest comedy contest competitors...

12 funny comics: Battle Royale IV heads to finals

Tyler Maas

November 14, 2014

This week’s trio of preliminary rounds in the fourth annual Caste Of Killers Battle Royale saw close to 30 comedians taking the stage at three combined venues in as many nights to pit their funniest five minute...

Milwaukee comedians prepare for battle

Tyler Maas

November 10, 2014

Milwaukee's stand-up comedy scene is usually overflowing with support. Comics are quick to collaborate and share stage time with anyone capable of cracking a joke in front of a group of people, and open mics ra...

Matt Werner finds validation, happiness on stage

Tyler Maas

November 6, 2014

Matt Werner’s introduction to stand-up came by less-than-flattering means. But now more than a year removed from his drunken, material-free introduction to the art form at an East Side open mic, he’s caught the...

Bob Odenkirk unleashes literary laughs at Pabst Theater

Tyler Maas

November 5, 2014

For more than three decades Bob Odenkirk has amassed an absolutely unfuckwithable comedic résumé that includes co-starring on Mr. Show, writing for SNL, penning dozens of TV and film’s most irreverent comedies,...

Halloween Comedy Show is set to scare up some laughs

Tyler Maas

October 31, 2014

Long after one’s acceptable trick-or-treating years have elapsed, Halloween weekend remains intriguing in adulthood because it offers a hiatus from all things ordinary. It grants a grace period from behaving as...

Ramie Makhlouf: From sports talk to stand-up

Tyler Maas

October 29, 2014

For thousands of listeners spread from Fond du Lac to Kenosha and all around metro Milwaukee, Ramie Makhlouf's voice is a part of the afternoon drive time commute, a trusted source of athletic information, and ...

Dave Chappelle (and Milwaukee) triumph at Pabst Theater

Matt Wild

October 28, 2014

Two questions dominated the conversation leading up to Dave Chappelle’s three-night, six-show stint at Pabst Theater, so let’s just get them out of the way:Q: Would Chappelle—somewhat notorious in recent ye...

Reminder: Please shut the f**k up at the Dave Chappelle shows (or you’ll be kicked out)

Matt Wild

October 24, 2014

Beginning Monday, October 27, the one and only Dave Chappelle will be setting up shop in Milwaukee for an extended three-day, six-show run at the Pabst Theater. Unsurprisingly, all six shows are sold out, meani...

Brian Regan comes clean in hilarious, wholesome Riverside Theater show

Tyler Maas

October 20, 2014

Clean comedy is something of an oxymoron these days. In an age that finds stand-up at its crudest, most brazen and experimental, and with little in the way of limitations, the clean, folksy, identifiable comic ...

Chris D’Elia plays the part of Pabst Theater headliner

Tyler Maas

October 17, 2014

Though he’s been performing stand-up comedy for eight years, Chris D’Elia is far better known for his comedic efforts in two immensely different formats. The comic got his start in acting, which yielded a regul...

Greg Bach makes up for lost stage time

Tyler Maas

October 16, 2014

Stand-up comedy is widely considered to be among the most difficult forms of entertainment to master. Like anything, the earlier one starts, the more lumps he or she can incur on the way to developing a set tha...

Watch the second episode of The Jake Kornely Show

Tyler Maas

October 13, 2014

Pilot episodes have a tendency to suck. If suffering through last week’s Mulaney premiere wasn’t evidence enough on its own, there’s likely a Library Of Congress-sized collection of tapes, DVDs, and digital fil...

Jerry Seinfeld pleases the Riverside Theater with a show about nothing

Tyler Maas

October 11, 2014

As the titular character of his long-running and culturally influential sitcom, Jerry Seinfeld—with the help of co-creator Larry David and a marvelous supporting cast—mastered observational humor, and coined in...

Christopher Schmidt finds growth in versatility

Tyler Maas

October 8, 2014

If Milwaukee's comedy scene was a baseball team, Christopher Schmidt would be the trusty utility man—able to be slotted anywhere in the batting order, moved virtually everywhere on the diamond, brought in cold ...