Good One: Clear Water Comedy gears up for big month of shows
Alex Tronson, photos by Lee Butterworth |
You can’t walk far in Eau Claire without running into at least a few Clear Water Comedy event flyers, packing-taped to light posts, shop windows, or across the river all over campus bulletin boards.
The collective, an eclectic group of some of the funniest and most dedicated people I know, are gearing up for a great season of new shows. From telling a few jokes at open mics to selling the House of Rock out of vodka, I have a strong suspicion that the Clear Water folks know what they’re doing, even if they’d never admit that themselves. Here’s what’s in store for September:
The Standup Getdown 3
Sept. 12 • House of Rock
About six months ago, a lot of people got to see a hesitant pizza delivery guy crowd surfing across a sweaty dance floor. There were beer-chugging contests, DJ’s, comedians, rappers, and around 300 attendees.
For an event that boasted itself as “bigger, better, and boozier,” it’s safe to say the Standup Getdown 2 succeeded on all fronts.
At the end of the night, Clear Water Comedian Jordan James realized that this was an event that needed to happen again… and again.
“After two successful Getdowns we’re hoping this one really cements it as a start-of-semester tradition that happens twice a year,” James said. “Beyond that we just want to put on the most fun event we possibly can – our aim is to give people something to talk about and remember.”
As a free biannual event, the Standup Getdown returns with its third iteration, once again hosted at House of Rock. The show will blend rapid-fire standup comedy with a variety of local musical acts including Sloslylove, North House, Sayth, Wealthy Relative, and Sniffle Party.
Some positive online buzz is proving that this show will be definitely be the kind of controlled chaos it strives to be, while still relying on the word-of-mouth advertising that was so crucial to the last two.
“We had House of Rock really close to capacity last time and for this one, we want to completely pack the place out. We want everyone we know to bring everyone they know and we’ll all spend the night laughing, dancing and eating pizza,” James said.
Sean Patton
Sept. 21 • The Plus
Eau Claire is a city between cities, someplace many nationally-renowned comedians and musicians probably drive through on their way to Minneapolis, Madison, or Chicago. Clear Water Comedy aims to put Eau Claire on the standup map by bringing in Comedy Central certified Sean Patton, who you might have seen on shows like Inside Amy Schumer or Maron, as well as being co-host of Esquire Network’s Best Bars in America. James believes this show to be an important milestone in the Eau Claire comedy scene.
“We’re hoping this Sean Patton show is the start of that. Word of mouth is so important, if we pack it out and impress him and his management, it will go a long way in establishing Eau Claire as a good place to perform.”
Tickets for the Sean Patton show on Monday, Sept. 21 are on sale now and available at The Plus for $10 each.
Newcomer Night
Sept. 17 • The Plus
It’s safe to say that the Eau Claire comedy scene is healthy. It’s doing well for itself, throwing shows, inviting guest standup acts, and now it’d like to expand. The Clear Water collective is really pushing for more people to try standup comedy themselves, to step out from the audience and onto the stage. Jordan James expressed his desire to see some new, fresh faces in the spotlight.
“There’s less than 10 of us right now and with life and careers and such that number keeps dropping, so this is just a fun way of us attempting to pull some new people into this thing we do. To anyone that reads this article and has ever thought about giving standup a try: please do! We’d love to have you and EC is simply one of the best places to try it out.”
It seems there’s always something funny going on in Eau Claire these days, and now it’s getting easier to find.
