Sometimes you can blame the crowd

by Brian McKim & Traci Skene on November 29th, 2005

Jerry Fink’s Las Vegas Sun review of a recent Monday night at Kathleen Dunbar‘s Divas of Comedy in the Casbar Lounge at the Sahara (entitled “No joke: Vegas audiences can be tough on comedians”) was notable for two reasons: 1) It described, in excruciating detail, an evening where nothing went right for the comedians and 2) It was, overall, a fair and accurate accounting that displayed tremendous empathy for the performers and was, on balance, a positive review!

From my perspective, I enjoyed watching Dunbar and fellow comedian Carla Rae sweat — not out of some perverse pleasure, but only because I had the opportunity to watch a couple of pros working under the severest of circumstances.

They didn’t quit. They gave it their best shot.

They may have been squirming as they fired blanks all night, but they didn’t back down.

It was like a battleground, and the comedians were determined to win — although in this case the victory may have just been getting through the entire performance.

The battle was brutal.

Fink perfectly captures the slow-motion disaster of a bad crowd, using nice details. At the same time, he manages to pay the highest compliments.

Having seen the comedians perform before, I know they are excellent at their craft. Their material, probably R rated, is funny. They can be hilarious. I have been sitting in audiences who were in tears as they performed.

But not this crowd.

Everyone’s nightmare– someone from the press in the house on a bad night– results in a review that is alternately painful, uproariously funny and, ultimately, positive.

The Female Half of the Staff has played the room and found it to be most challenging, a real test of a comic’s mettle. “But it can be a great room,” she says. She adds that she is stunned at how well regulars Dunbar and Rae handle the room and the audiences week after week.

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