A couple of folks have told me that they weren't able to load the trib review for Apes, so here is the full thing. Enjoy!
'Apes' remains slightly bonkers, little known and incredibly hilarious
COMEDY REVIEW: "Impress These Apes" at ComedySportz ★★★★
Nina Metz Chicago Closeup
5:23 p.m. CDT, July 15, 2014
I have no idea why "Impress These Apes," the hugely funny comedy competition now in its eighth season, remains such a niche event that's known pretty much only within comedy nerd circles.
But that's fine. Really! Because bigger buzz would inevitably lead to slicker execution and a larger venue. That would not be good, not for a show like this, where so much of its appeal lies in the fact that it's still something of an underground phenomenon.
And so the show remains small in scale and cozy (if slightly bonkers) in temperament. Want that delicious feeling of discovery? This is your show, led by four interstellar apes from the future who have corralled eight performers -- each year a new mix of stand-up comedians and improvisers -- who go head-to-head Monday nights in a quest to impress these apes.
This season has a cruise ship theme, and I realize writing about this show can sometimes look like an exercise in non sequiturs. Why apes? Why a cruise ship? Why the future?
I don't know. But it works. All of it. Even in its shaggier moments. Every piece works, and I don't know that I can say that about any other theatrical offering in town, comedy or not.
So, the basics: Competitors are given one week to prepare for their assignment, which is just loopy enough to push everyone onstage out of their comfort zone. That, I think, is why performers want to be a part of the show. It forces them to broaden the concept of who they are, or what they're capable of onstage. It all feels terribly personal, and there's something almost noble in the attempt to strive for something deeper than the status quo.
These are precisely the sort of circumstances highly creative funny people thrive under -- egos are on the line, but there's a real spirit of camaraderie, handcrafted prop-making, juvenile laughs and striving to do something out of the ordinary -- resulting in strange, vulnerable moments that are also startlingly funny.
The first challenge, performed this week, was a "get to know you" bit: They were asked to build puppet versions of themselves, which were used to reveal a little bit about who they are.
John Leadley's ode to bars and his love of the drink was just the kind of sardonic, unexpectedly brilliant interpretation that is emblematic of "Impress These Apes." His puppet was crafted out of the top half of an empty bottle of Jameson Irish Whiskey, and like a phoenix rising from the ashes, Leadley's puppet emerged from an assemblage of booze in a marvel of visual creativity. But the bar stories he told were just as important and winning for their tenderness.
(You can watch clips from every show at impresstheseapes.com; also worth watching are those from Trevor Martin, Steven King and top-scorer Tiff Svitko.)
The individual performances are prepped ahead of time, but the apes sitting in judgment are engaged in full-throttle improv, offering sharp jokes but even sharper critiques. This is key. The show has to genuinely push these competitors to bring their A-game. And the judges do it with a real sense of off-the-cuff wit: "I've always wanted to see a Tinder date in a psyche ward," went one observation after a competitor finished his puppet rendition of picking up a woman in Wrigleyville.
The crack panel is comprised of Bryan Bowden (playing a good ol' boy named Bushmeat who began his assessment of Leadley's puppet with: "First off, excellent use of garbage ..."), Steve Gadlin (whose ascot-wearing Barry Shirley is a latter day Charles Nelson Reilly), Paul Luikart (as Captain Apehab) and Erica Reid (maternal but biting as April May).
On Monday the challenge will be as follows: "You have been randomly assigned a theme song to a popular movie that one might watch on a cruise ship. You must choreograph and perform an original dance to this song. Your dance is to be inspired by the movie it is from, but remember that dance is the focal point of the piece." The assigned songs range from "Fame" to "Space Jam" to "Ghostbusters."
Twitter @NinaMetzNews
When: 8 p.m. Mondays through Sept. 1
Where: ComedySportz, 929 W. Belmont Ave.
Running time: 1 hour, 45 minutes
Tickets: $12 at 773-549-8080 or comedysportzchicago.com
