…signed by Kirsten Ames, who calls herself “Producer Of Festival Talent” of the U.S. Comedy Arts Festival (and we have no reason to doubt her). It’s a letter being sent out to all of the folks in the comedy business who might be in a position (club managers, bookers, etc.) to observe (and subsequently recommend) any talented people slaving away in the comedy trenches of Standup America.

We at the US Comedy Arts Festival have always strived to discover and foster new, unrepresented (emphasis ours!) talent within the entertainment industry. We are currently accepting VHS and DVD videos from up and coming talent throughout North America for consideration and involvement in the 2005 Aspen Comedy Festival. If you could please post this flyer within your comedy venue, and encourage local talent you are aware of to send in their tapes, it would be much appreciated.

The current deadline for submissions is October 15th, 2004, and the festival will be taking place February 9-13th in Aspen, Colorado. We look forward to receiving your submissions.

The document seems to have been created using Microsoft Word. (In the original, the “th” in “February 9-13th” is one of those superscript th’s.) And, from our expert analysis, it seems to be authentic.

What struck us as unusual about the document, however, is that word– unrepresented— in the first sentence of the first paragraph. If you’ve paid close attention to our grousing here at SHECKYmagazine.com, you know we’ve taken a somewhat dim view of the goings on in the mountains of Colorado with regard to USCAF. The main thrust of our discontent was that it was, for lack of a better word, elitist. It always struck us as odd that a festival that purported to be about comedy would choose one of the most expensive, most remote (and expensive) venues in all of the continental U.S. And, we were fairly certain that anyone who performed there was already blessed by Hollywood and was only there because they’d already secured fairly high-powered management and representation. So, regardless of what they had said in the past about “discovering” new talent, that was all largely window-dressing.

Then we stumble across this letter.

And along with the letter comes the aforementioned flyer. The flyer is a handsome production, in red and black and white that is headlined, “OPEN ROAD TO ASPEN” in large, bold letters. Beneath that it says, ” No Rep Required” in only slightly smaller, but equally bold letters. And, in the body of the flyer, which seeks “Stand-Up, One Person Shows, Theatrical Productions, Sketch Groups, Alternative Acts,” it says, “NO AGENT OR MANAGER NEEDED.”

Just what is going on here? Seems pretty clear. USCAF wants “new, unrepresented” talent. We may be mistaken, but we don’t recall USCAF making such a big deal about championing those of us without management or representation in the past. Might this be in response to a widespread perception among those of us in the comedy biz that USCAF is a “locked game” that merely serves as a ski holiday for Hollywood fatcats (and their clients)?

Regardless of what is going on, it’s a positive development. You can bet we’re going to send in a tape and a kit. If anyone else out there sends something along to the folks at USCAF, let us know how it turns out.

To which Ang replied (5:52 PM);

I actually wrote that letter. I am the talent associate for Kirsten Ames. Its for real. If you want to submit a tape, email me and I’ll give you the address. There’s no CBS conspiracy or “stuck up attitude” to worry about here. BTW, we were both hysterical for at least 10 minutes upon hearing about this post.