My Vid of Cameron Esposito at the Fourth Fridays 2nd Anniversary Show

Cameron Esposito, January 23, 2009 at the Fourth Fridays 2nd Anniversary Show at Town Hall Pub, Chicago. Video, photography, original music and editing by moi.

Cameron interrupts a joke about how her Yahoo homepage thinks she's an idiot to penetrate a cloud of booze and cluelessness to shush some loud talkers in the crowd, and observes that her glorious new haircut makes her look like a 70's bubblegum pop star of either gender. She also relates the story of making a well-heeled woman at a fundraiser clutch her pearls at the answer to the question "how do you get those nice triceps?" (Just between us, the answer was "banging chicks.") All this and more!

My Vid of Adam Burke at the Fourth Fridays 2nd Anniversary Show

Adam Burke, January 23, 2009 at the Fourth Fridays 2nd Anniversary Show at Town Hall Pub, Chicago. Video, photography, original music and editing by moi.

Adam will miss the fun of slipping and falling on Chicago's slick sidewalks but is happy that our horrible winters mean you can wear whatever the heck you want, as long as it keeps you warm. He wonders if it might be nice to revive extinct mammoths, just so he could wear a toasty mammoth ear cape for warmth, and mammoth testicles for earmuffs. Also, isn't it great that winter means the end of the wedding season? Because Adam is sick of people at weddings ask "so when will you two be tying the knot?" even when he's sitting next to an ice sculpture. Also, he wonders why writing wedding invitations turns everyone into an Elizabethan duchess or a French aristocrat...and MORE!

My Vid of James Fritz at the Fourth Fridays 2nd Anniversary Show

Sorry I haven't been posting much. I've been a little busy/under the weather/had some family concerns. All is well, hope you are, too!


James Fritz, January 23, 2009 at the Fourth Fridays 2nd Anniversary Show at Town Hall Pub, Chicago. Video, photography, original music and editing by moi.

James Fritz explores his Southern white guilt in light of Obama's ascension to the office of President and wants to remind white people that just because we have a black President, doesn't mean we can hail cabs with the Black Power fist. Fritz watched the inauguration and didn't much care for the bad spoken word poetry and what seemed like hours and hours of prayer. Fritz thinks telling everyone you have Seasonal Affective Disorder in the middle of Chicago winter is kind of redundant, because we're all pretty damn depressed at the moment, and really, do you think it makes you more complex and interesting than the rest of us? Also, does Matthew McConaughey hold the key to happiness? Because he seems like the Golden Retriever of human beings.

My Video of Seth Williams at Fourth Fridays 2nd Anniversary Show

Seth celebrates the second anniversary of Fourth Fridays! He explains why the Dixie Chicks are gangsta, wonders, now that we have our first black President, who were the other black firsts, like the first black dude to get a Jheri Curl? Seth discusses marriage and kids, personally thanks Obama for his newfound sense of entitlement and for bringing back in vogue handsome light-skinned black gents. Well, that's not *exactly* how he put it...

(Includes strong language.)

My Write-Up of Big Jones Restaurant on Chicago Metblog

I just posted this review of Big Jones restaurant on Chicago Metblog. Long story short: YUM.

My Pix From the Feb. 7 Maria Bamford Show at the Lakeshore Theater

All pix by me, full set here. This was Saturday night, and it was great fun. Dan and Adam had the audience in the palm of their hands! Bryan and I sat with Dan's wife Victoria up front so I could take pix (thanks, Tony Blanco!), but we also met up with Keith, Crank, Katie, Nellie, and Teresa. Watching my comedy BFF's open for our comedy hero (to a wildly appreciative audience, no less) was a thrill. Also, thanks to the Lakeshore Theater for giving me and Bryan "anniversary of our first date" passes to the show. Ritter and Blanco, merci.

Maria Bamford




Dan Telfer




Adam Burke




Tony Blanco and audience members

Bryan Tasting Malört

Bryan
Originally uploaded by Fuzzy Gerdes

Ha ha!! Fuzzy's birthday party on Friday was great fun. Leigh Vandiver was there! Also a nice assortment of the usual Blewt-y suspects - Noah, Speedy, Tyler, Shannon, etc. And of course Erica and Fuzzy, who were pushing Malört like it was Diet Coke. I was not brave enough to taste it but Bryan is always up for a challenge to his palate.

This is the "Who do I punch to get this taste out of my mouth?" phase of the experience. Malört, for the uninitiated, is a terrible liquor made of wormwood, and it's lingering aftertastes are described variously as "burning tires," "nail polish remover," and "bug spray." Mmmm.

My Pix of the Feb 4 Young Chicago Authors' Encyclopedia Show at Chopin Theater

(All pix by me, full set here.)

My Chicago Underground Comedy co-producer Dan Telfer (who's opening for Maria Bamford at the Lakeshore Theater this weekend, holy crap!) has a little brother named Robbie Q. Telfer. Robbie is a big-deal slam poet and writer and works with Young Chicago Authors. Last night was the third installation of his and Shanny Jean Maney's monthly Encyclopedia Show, which is a great fun. Each show has a theme -- this one was the visual spectrum -- and each performer has written five minutes of material on the theme. (Except for hyper-achiever Dan, who writes, designs, and publishes an original book on each theme!)

Performers include kids associated with the YCA who have already cut their teeth at competitive poetry slams, and Chicago creative notables including writers, poets, visual artists and musicians. The show was really fun, and funny, and there were lots of hilarious and poignant moments throughout the night. If you're looking for a night of invigorating creativity and lots of laughs, I highly recommend heading to the Chopin Theater for the next show.

Robbie Q. Telfer and Shanny Jean Maney


Dan Telfer


Shadell Jamison


Jilted Emily Rose


Leena Trevedi-Grenier


Robbie Q. Telfer and Shanny Jean Maney


Joel Chmara


Annalissia-Kiana "KeeKey" Itson


Cameron McGill


Robbie Q. Telfer


Jonathan Messinger


Alex Petruszak


slam poetry legend Marc Smith




Final bow

Kudos from the Tribune!

The Chicago Tribune has decided Bella Rossa is one of Chicago's best arts and culture blogs! Thank you!

Vote For My Niece Melissa's T-Shirt at Threadless!

Hey, remember my awesome (grownup) niece Melissa Tipton, my BFF and creative partner in crime? She who lit a fire under my scaredy comedy tush and inspired my stage fright auction, co-created the Terrible Music Project with me, and who designed several of my friends' websites?

Well, she has a t-shirt design in the running for print at Threadless, the super cool Chicago t-shirt-ery, and you can make me and her very happy by going to the Threadless website and voting for her carrot t-shirt, also known as "See no, hear no, eat no meat"!

If her t-shirt goes all the way with Threadless, she'll get a much-needed cash prize, with which she'll buy extravagant things like food and toothpaste. (Being a brilliant freelance web designer can mean a bit of scrimping sometimes.) So be a sweetie, and go vote for her!

My Articles in Swedish Covenant Hospital's Well Magazine

Hey! If you happen to be a health-minded Chicagoan strolling by the Book Cellar, Sir Spa, or select other locations, grab yourself a copy of the magazine at left, Swedish Covenant Hospital's Well Magazine. Yours truly wrote three of the articles inside, including this piece about the importance of good posture. Also, sit up straight!