All photos by Sam Goldstein
Most people don't get Stella. I mean, you either get it or you don't, and most people don't. My sister doesn't. She doesn't get Stella at all. But why? I mean, when it comes down to it, both Dane Cook and Stella are telling dick jokes. In some respects Stella is even more unsophisticated than Dane Cook. I guess there is this level of meta going on, like we get they're telling a dick joke, and it's the fact that they're telling a dick joke that's funny, not the dick joke itself. That sounds sort of pretentious though. But I think it's true. I'd like to think I have a pretty refined sense of humor. And Stella makes me laugh. A lot. When they dry hump a tree, it's really funny, but when Dane Cook dry humps a tree, it's obnoxious. I get Stella. I get every single joke. I get why every bit of it is funny. This sort of punchline-less absurdist uncomfortable humor is my cup of tea.
That being said, spoiler alert, I loved the show. I am Stella fan boy #1. I mean, I didn't cheer extra loud or laugh extra hard just to prove to those around me that I got the inside joke (like the people in front of me did), but yeah, I'm that fan that's a little too into them.
So I'm not really sure how to review a show like this. Without seeing another specific show on this tour I can't really compare. It's been quite a while since they've toured as Stella, yet we've seen individual stand up from Michael Showalter and Michael Ian Black and opener Eugene Mirman seemingly a dozen times in DC in the past couple years. These performances have been quite enjoyable, but when this three headed beast Stella rears it's head, we transcend mere stand up and have some sort of performance art. Down syndrome performance art.
The venue worked. The crowd was cool for the most part. Opener Eugene Mirman did his Eugene thing before the show. His best bits are always when he fills our surveys on web sites or talk to telemarketers or writes myspace messages, etc. He should focus his entire act on those bits.
Anyway, short and sweet followed by a quick intermission and Stella takes the stage.
What is brilliant about Stella is the entire show comes off as improv. And most certainly some of it is, but a few things which seem like off the cuff remarks are later referenced in elaborate banter proving the entire thing was a gag. They've worked with each other so long and all have the exact same sense of humor and understand each others timing so perfectly that they really come off as this three-headed man-child. They are able to channel these common ways of saying something... like they parody a common way people react to something. It's hard to explain. I think that's what elevates the humor though. They make fun of Dane Cook fans so indirectly you sometimes don't even know why you're laughing.
A new video was shown during intermission that was just as good as the old stuff. David Wain wasn't overshadowed by the Michaels. A good chunk of the material was new. Everyone had a good time.
Stella is not for everyone, but those of us that are in tune with what they're doing, we left the synagogue very satisfied customers.
Note: Stella stayed after the show to introduce a screening of Wet Hot American Summer, but I was tired and hungry and had just watched it so I left. Anybody know how that went?
Previously in comedy:
- 2/10: Behind The Desk 35: Spotting THE Crazy In the Arts (Vol. 2)
- 2/7: LiveDC: Demetri Martin @ Warner Theatre
- 1/24: LiveDC: Adam Carolla @ Fillmore
- 1/20: Behind The Desk 32: Eddie Brill Is Common
- 1/17: LiveDC: JB Smoove @ 930 Club
- 12/8: Tom Arnold - Up Close & Very Nice
- 12/5: LiveDC: Michael Ian Black @ Sixth and I Synagogue
- 12/5: Lauren Weedman-BUSTED
- 12/1: R.I.P. Patrice O'Neal - brilliant 1969 to 2011
- 11/30: BYT Interview: Michael Ian Black
God loves a cheerful giver.
pretty much-as perfect of a night as it gets in my book.
Saw 2/3 of Stella at the Black Cat a few years back, MIB is hilarious. Wish I could have made it to this.
You're kind of giving Eugene Mirman short shrift there, he "did his Eugene thing before the show. His best bits are always when he fills our surveys on web sites or talk to telemarketers or writes myspace messages, etc. He should focus his entire act on those bits." I strongly disagree with that and I can pretty much guarantee that if he did that the reviews would be "he did his Eugene thing, but come on, how many surveys does one man need to fill out?" The change of pace is part of what makes the act strong.
With regards to Stella, I enjoyed them as well, but this whole "you either get it or you don't thing" smacks of anti-conformist conformism. It's a little bit "I'm in the in group of comedy people who define ourselves by hating Dane Cook". For more on this attitude, please see everyone who hates John Mayer. I'm not a fan of Dane Cook either, but not all comedy is responding to him or making fun of him. Stella's roots lie more in a mix of old-school three-stooges/Laurel and Hardy + New school irony and absurdism, and then whenever it gets heady they snap it back down to earth with a dick joke (which is funny both in contrast to what came before, but also because dick and fart jokes make everyone laugh as long as their brain gives them permission to do so without feeling like they're dumb). Remember, they've been doing Stella for ten years, which is significantly longer than Dane Cook has been "Dane Cook: Comedy Megastar."
Some of their bits were strong and some were less strong, and some were just so silly as to be pointless but they get a free pass because they're famous and the audience already loves them. I really enjoyed the show, but it wasn't all gold. And frankly the Encore which you hope will be the strongest part, something to bring the audience together, was entirely incomprehensible. Either that or it was an in joke which you had to know something about them or the original song or whatever to get. Either way, I thought it was a poor choice to close on.
Good show, good energy, fun multimedia, but not perfect, and not all about Dane Cook.
Didn't mean to come off as anti-Eugene. I love Eugene. I've seen him many times, I've interviewed him on this site, hung out with him, etc. I still think there is enough variety in his prank calls/Borat style humor that could carry an entire act. Mix that with his videos and audience participation bits and I think you would just be changing pace between the best parts with no filler.
I didn't literally mean that Stella was responding to Dane Cook. I was using Dane as an example of a more straight forward brand of comedy, and extended that to a more straight forward brand of human behaivor in general (ie saying party as par-tay).
I personally enjoy the so silly they're pointless bits, but you were absolutely right on the encore being a bit of a let down. Especially following the excellent Friendship song. I didn't think it was a total bomb though, the high quality of the art on the slides was especially ridiculous (in a good way).
Ok, gotta run, have tickets for Todd Barry tonight.