I can't tell you how excited I was. Honestly. I'd been idealizing that venue since 12th grade. A comedy club that is in the back of a comic book store and beneath a podcast studio-- for my money, you couldn't get more magical if you tried. So killer. It really felt like home. I love club comedy with a little grit, especially in NYC, but damn. I know that little alt rooms will always have such a big chunk my heart. Makes me so happy. I left my first show there with a feeling that this would quickly become my favorite venue.
Working at a comedy club had been a dream of mine, and my first opportunity was spending a few months as an intern at Nerdmelt. Or, as they called it, a Nerdtern. I lived in Los Angeles in the spring of 2016, and I worked as a Nerdtern until my time was up and I had to go back to the East Coast. It didn't pay and it was pretty menial work around the showroom, but wow, it meant so much to me to be a part of.
I was very early to my first interview there, of course. After pulling myself together as much as I could, I walked into the green room where the program director told me to met her. Also waiting for me was the club's stage manager. After introducing myself and grabbing a seat, the manager began to tell me a little about the position. It would be a few nights a week, and I would show up an hour before the first show and leave after the last show. I would be doing things like working the snack bar or the front door, as well as floating responsibilities such as taking out the trash or setting up the chairs. All simple and entry-level things, but that's what an internship is all about.
Also, little did I know, but the Nerdmelt theater wasn’t to be long for this world. I am so grateful for my time there, and it is truly missed. (Although, that said, we did get Howard Kremer’s Squatmelt out of it, so it wasn’t a total loss.)
Here are a dozen of my favorite shows from that Spring at Nerdmelt:
This Show is Your Show: Hosted by Matt Bennett and Moses Storm, with Alex Hooper, Jade Catta-Preta, Zack Pearlman, Demetri Martin, Rob Bebenek, Terrance Newman and Chris Redd. Brad Bowers on bass.
It felt like home. Charming hosts and atmosphere, Demetri Martin was incredible while trying out new jokes-- he had moments with a vulnerability/sincerity I’ve never seen from him. So fitting to see him there, he was my first comedy love back in middle school. Also Bebenek might be a new favorite, really dug him.
Set List: Hosted by Matt Kirshen, with Jerry Rocha, Alice Wetterlund, Rick Shapiro, Sean Patton, Jay Larson and Aisling Bea.
Set List is a show that I’ve been looking forward to see since I first heard about it years ago. The comedians are prompted with slides that provide them with their “set list” for the night. The show is therefore improvised stand-up comedy. Sean and Jay were killer, and Aisling created an entire narrative story with hers-- super fascinating. My favorite thing about this show is seeing the new slide pop up and watching the comedian’s wheels start to turn as they work through their angles.
Doug Loves Movies. Host: Doug Benson
DLM welcomes Steve Rannazzissi, Clare Kramer and Sean Jordan for movie trivia. Say what you want about Steve Rannazzissi, he was the first and only comedian to ever introduce himself to the interns and shake our hands.
Historical Roast: Leonardo Di Vinci. Host: Eddie Furth and Ryan Pigg.
Awersome concept for a monthly show-- comics come up and make fun of figures from history. Nerdy, cheesy jokes about the renaissance, wooden helicopters, and the Mona Lisa smile. Now on Netflix! Which is crazy.
Laughs for Limbs. Host: Monique Madrid
Comedy show on behalf of the charity Laughs for Limbs, which is a nonprofit that raises money to buy prosthetics for people who have lost arms and/or legs to injury or disease. Many of the comedians were differently abled, including Danielle Perez who I adored. Show highlights: Kay Cannon (of Pitch Perfect fame) telling a running/pooping story and Superego, my loves, doing long-form improv.
Retro Rad. Host: Kyle Clark and Caitlin Durante
Earth Day show. Similar to ‘Can I Kick It?’ in the sense that it loves and mocks its subject, which in this case is retro cartoons and advertisements. They also aired a full episode of Captain Planet where one character thinks he gets AIDS. Super weird and definitely worth our attention.
Private Event: Sirius XM Town Hall Interview of Chris Hardwick, hosted by Wil Wheaton
One of my favorite comedy events there. Wil and Chris have been friends since childhood and between in-jokes and goofing off there were some really beautiful moments of vulnerability and authenticity. They talked about the death of Chris’s father, the inception of the podcast, his upcoming special, his battle with alcoholism, and general musings about the state and the purpose of stand-up. Hardwick has been revealed to be a bit, well, complicated, but the show meant a lot to me at the time.
The Meltdown. Host: Jonah Ray and (guest-host) Judd Apatow. Featuring: Jon Dore, Kara Klenk, Shane Mauss, Joe DeRosa, Charla Lauriston, Rory Scovel, Kristen Schaal
My first Meltdown! Very exciting. The audience was clearly full of regulars-- the room was buzzing from the get-go. So lovely and comforting. Jonah and Judd had great banter, and the show’s lineup was out of control amazing. Kristen did her super-alty Kristen thing, honestly more performance art than comedy which is fun, but my boy Rory was the stand-out. Brilliant. He’s so good at being easy and natural yet still provocative. My favorite favorite.
The Tinkle Twins. Host: Dana Gould and Arden Myrin. Featuring: Esther Povitsky, Adam Newman, Kyle Kinane, Dean Delray
Arden is so high-energy it takes a second to adjust to her, but once you do she’s utterly endearing. Dana is Dana, such an old-fashioned feel to his stand-up which I love. I was in and out during the show because I was working, but I made sure to be in the room for Kinane, who is so goddamn brilliant. Tied with Scovel for my favorite. Never disappoints.
Set List. Host: Troy Conrad. Featuring: Rick Overton, Graham Elwood, Hampton Yount, Todd Glass, etc.
So Set List is that show I saw a few months ago-- it’s the one where comedians are presented with random phases throughout their time that they have to use as prompts for their ‘set list.’ Essentially, it is improvised stand-up. This was a really interesting show to watch because I was working the snack bar that night, which means I was way in the back with an obstructed view. From where I was sitting, I could see the comics and the stage, but the projected showing the set list was blocked, basically meaning I never knew what was going on, haha. I like pretending I was just witnessing a super weird showcase. The only comedian I made an effort to go and watch properly was Todd Glass, who tore down the place. One often hears comedy lore about those sets where someone is so good there’s a specific magic to it, and this definitely felt like one of those nights. Todd Glass refuses to play the game, so he instead spent his time roasting the other comics and roasting the game itself. I’ve never seen a rant work so well, and I was in the back meaning I not only saw the room falling apart, but I saw the other comics losing it. Especially RIck Overton, who leaned over to me and said “I’ve got to go shake his hand,” when Todd finished his set. I even went and congratulated Todd after the show, who was very gracious and even gave me a hug, haha. Nights like these made me feel so blessed to be at Nerdmelt.
Beta Test. Host: Chris Hardwick. Guests: Judd Apatow and Myq Kaplan
A lots of the shows at Nerdmelt are a little too high-premise for my liking, but I absolutely love Beta Test. The whole point of beta test, as the name suggests, is a chance for comedians to try 20 minutes of new material. The show is free so there’s less pressure, and it lets comics just kinda fart around and do their thing. I love work-out shows, they’re my favorite. They’re so random and authentic, I really dig ‘em. Myq is obviously great-- I’ve interviewed him and I’ve loved him for a while now, but I think I was most impressed with Apatow. I’d never really seen him perform in person and I really appreciate his perspective. He’s a cool dude.
The Meltdown. Host: Jonah Ray and (guest-host) Judd Apatow. Featuring: James Adomian, Patrick Susmilch, Myq Kaplan, Moshe Kasher, Melissa Villasenor, Ron Funches
My favorite show in LA, no question. After seeing my first Meltdown, I wasn’t about to miss this one, especially which such a killer lineup. Funches is only getting better, he should do an entire My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend-esque special about his son. I’d kill to see that. Myq was charmingly existential as always, and Moshe was working on a set for a taping. Adomian was the last on the bill and quite possibly my favorite, even with a stacked deck like this. He was open and energetic and I left the show wanting to know his life story, which is always a good sign.