The 2014 Comedy Oddball Tour
By Lauren Clymer
If you want to see A-list comedians and laugh your butt off for a night without it costing you an arm or a leg, the 2014 Oddball Comedy and Curiosity Festival is something you need to go to.
With tickets as low as $35, the tour is going state to state to make America laugh- even if they feel like they shouldn’t. On Friday, August 22nd, comedians Louis C.K., Sarah Silverman, Bill Burr, and many more hit Long Island’s Jones Beach Theatre stage in Wantagh, NY. With the stage sitting in the water in an open stadium-style venue, the cool ocean breeze refreshing you, and the laughter, it was definitely a night to remember. Although it was a disappointment that some comedians on the tour (Aziz Ansari, Amy Schumer, etc) did not make it to the Jones Beach Theatre, there were still plenty of jokes and uncomfortable stories to make the crowd cackle. The host of the evening, Jeff Ross, warmed the crowd up with one liners and interactions with the crowd (mostly commenting on the amount of men wearing flip flops) before introducing some great acts. |
While everyone who performed was hilarious, Louis C.K. really had the best set. His blunt, fearless humor always makes you think, ‘should I really laugh at that?’. With crude baby jokes and a nice little story about his dog who died of a face tumor, Louis ended the Oddball Comedy tour on a high note. But, before him, the crowd seemed a little quiet.
Sarah Silverman’s set, a couple before Louis C.K.’s, was completely mediocre for someone with her experience in stand up comedy. Walking onto the stage with a yellow note pad, the crowd expected to hear her usual harsh comedy but was quickly disappointed |
Silverman seemed unprepared for the show and, instead of making the crowd laugh, preached a little too hard about women’s rights. Don’t get me wrong, it’s an important subject, but not for people who expected to hear racy, offensive jokes all night. While she stood at the mic, Silverman would check her notepad saying, “what else do I have to say?” as if it was meant to be a funny part of her act but it really just came off as unprepared. And, with her checking her note pad after every one liner, her actual time making us laugh was about 16 minutes for her expected 25-30 minute set, definitely a disappointment for those who were looking forward to seeing her. Then, when you factor in the preaching of the women’s rights- and not in a funny way, it seemed as if Silverman only told one, maybe two, jokes that really hit the crowd.
I’m all for shedding light on serious topics through humor, but there needs to be actual humor when doing so. Silverman was always a fearless woman comic who could even make men uncomfortable with her risque jokes but now, after her very brief and dull set, I see her to be shifting over to a political rights activist. Maybe it was just a bad night or she wasn’t feeling well, but either way, Sarah Silverman was far from the funniest of the 2014 Oddball Comedy Tour.
Overall, the show made me cry from laughing so much. Although some parts made me snooze, I’d certainly lay out the $35 to experience it all again.
I’m all for shedding light on serious topics through humor, but there needs to be actual humor when doing so. Silverman was always a fearless woman comic who could even make men uncomfortable with her risque jokes but now, after her very brief and dull set, I see her to be shifting over to a political rights activist. Maybe it was just a bad night or she wasn’t feeling well, but either way, Sarah Silverman was far from the funniest of the 2014 Oddball Comedy Tour.
Overall, the show made me cry from laughing so much. Although some parts made me snooze, I’d certainly lay out the $35 to experience it all again.