So we (Laura and I) went to a comedy show on Thursday. Being my typical skeptical self, I was not expecting much...at all but, as usual I was pleased and surprised to find yet another jewel in in the unknown places in this glorious town! The Lincoln Lodge, I think, is both the place and the comedy troupe that we saw and we had a very good evening. The location is in a side room of the Lincoln Restaurant with the big Lincoln head for a sign.
The show was hosted by the Puterbaugh Sisters who were funny and got the audience involved in the show. The show also featured Tia Ayers and Elliot Rahal (the latter being a member of the actual troupe and the former being a new transplant from L.A.) the show also had another witty, and musical, performance from Dan Polydoris who sang a song which included "the little bit of Spanish that he actually knew" - limited Spanish aside it was pretty clever and awfully funny. I should also mention their "man on the street" interviews which focus on a member of the cast, Paul Sigwerth in this case (I believe) who accosts random people in front of the venue on Lincoln Avenue at Irving Park and attempts to get them to come inside. On this evening he was 2 for 4!
The standouts of the show, however, were Allison Leber who had a hysterical, semi-self deprecating act focusing on her weight and back hair - sounds maybe not so funny I know but trust me, she WILL make you laugh!
The other stand-out act was a gentleman by the name of Monte. Yes, thats right, just Monte - at least that i know of. His act is not so much a comedy routine as it is a series of restaurant reviews with food samplings from one of the featured venues. This may sound out of place in a comedy show but it actually somehow fits right in as Monte himself has a very Chicago charm and is very excitable and witty.
The location has a lot of odd, naugahyde charm and serves some giant 34 oz. mugs of beer for only $6.50!! The shows are every Thursday and Friday at 9:00 P.M. and the cast changes every week. Get there early, especially on Friday as it is not a huge space and does fill up pretty quickly. Have a beer and a laugh - go on, it's good for you!
If you want more info about the Lincoln Lodge or Monte, go to:
http://www.thelincolnlodge.com/home.html
http://monteism.com/Welcome.html
http://flickr.com/photos/monteism/
http://www.vimeo.com/monteism
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