There It Is Podcast

Jason reunites with Alchemy Comedy Theater founders Harrison Brookie, Jason Underwood, Meg Schutz, and Ben Burris to celebrate the Greenville, South Carolina theater’s 15-year anniversary and recap the alumni-heavy weekend, including former performers and teams getting in on the fun. They reflect on initial conversations about starting Alchemy, self-coaching dynamics, early plans for a training ce...

Writer Una LaMarche joins us to talk about her path from Wesleyan film studies to editing (New York Observer) to freelance humor (McSweeney's, Allure) writing, her creative process, how she uses comic essays to process life, and her reflexive over-apologizing (including saying sorry after being lightly hit by a car). Influenced by Fran Lebowitz and David Sedaris, she published five books in four y...

Jason, Rob, and Trey (the “Of the Show” fellas) open with bits and then discuss the HBO series Lanterns, avoiding spoilers for the latest episode while reacting to the season so far. They praise the cast, especially Kyle Chandler as a jaded Hal Jordan and Aaron Pierre as John Stewart, but admittedly nitpick accents, ages, and a few dialogue choices, while acknowledging the show’s strong impact and...

Jason shares some quick tips on how to focus on tasks when you're struggling with managing your mental load. Whether various tasks are on your mind or emotional stressors are bogging you down, we have some advice from the Mayo Clinic on how to manage the distractions so you can focus on creating. Instagram: @ThereItIsPod, @JasonFarrPics  Threads: @ThereItIsPod, @JasonFarrPics Facebook: @ThereItIsP...

We talk to comedian, Katie Novotny! Jason talks with Katie about her comedy path from Chicago’s Second City and iO to making a web series that led a talent agent to encourage her to try stand-up. Katie describes initially feeling shut out of improv house teams, learning to love stand-up through festivals and road gigs, and how regional “bubbles” affect what material lands. She explains why she rel...

Evan Harris, Dear Friend of the Podcast, is back to talk about spending the last year acting in many short films to build experience and a reel and about what led to stand-up being on the back burner while doing more sketch and character work. She also discusses producing her LA show “Town Hall,” where comics pitch bringing back bygone things, along with the logistical stress of booking, last-minu...

The "Of the Show Fellas" are back! Jason, Trey (Brother of the Show), and Rob (Best Friend of the show) talk all that pop about what the best sitcoms of all-time are, share what the final box office take Spider-Man: Brand New Day will have, guess who they think will definitely host SNL this season, and, as usual, make a ton of random references. It's a fun, nerdy chat! Instagram: @ThereItIsPod, @J...

We talk to author, speaker, and creator, Heather E. Schwartz! Jason talks with Heather, creator of Quiet Girl Comedy, about her journey and how a lifelong shyness and stage fright shifted after taking improv classes which led her to her current workshops. She talks about how a musical improv boot camp at ImprovBoston led her to notice that performance energy varies by experience. She shares moving...

We talked to first-generation Cuban American, New York-based filmmaker and actor, Laura Ornella! Jason talks with Laura about discovering comedy through improv before expanding into sketch, character work, and satire. Laura shares how her competitive streak pushed her into new classes at UCB, The PIT, and BCC, and how satire writing helped her see the connection between humor and advertising, even...

Jason is joined by Justina, Wife of the Show, to talk a little comedy shop talk about projects! They talk about the struggle that can sometimes come with completing projects, Jason unpacks his psyche behind his personal history with uncompleted projects, and Justina shares the freedom she feels knowing that she can stop doing something if it's not bringing joy. It's an honest chat about how diffic...

We talked to New York City-based stand-up and musical comedian, Kimberly Dinaro! Jason has a delightful chat with Kimberly about how comedy entered her life through acting school, working at Lush, attending NYU, and her appearance on the Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon in the Instant Songwriters Challenge. Kimberly also discusses the confidence gap between famous people and working artists, how...

We talked to NYC-based improviser and show producer, Delmar Dualeh! Delmar talks with Jason about being raised in Harlem and Charlotte, how reading The Artist’s Way led him to try improv at the Magnet Theater, and how he overcame terrifying class shows. He discusses being known as “funny” since school, doing high school debate, hosting events in college, and stumbling into producing shows in NYC....

We talked to psychic stand-up comedian, Karen Rontowski! We had a fascinating chat with Karen Rontowski, the psychic stand-up! Karen has spent decades as a touring comedian, appearing everywhere from The Late Show with David Letterman to Comedy Central, and she's also a professional tarot reader who blends full stand-up sets with live card readings on stage. She talks with Jason about growing up d...

We talked to NYC-based actor, improviser, and improv instructor, Ivy Hong! We had a wonderful and long overdue chat with Ivy about her journey from a theater-loving kid in Santa Cruz to speech and debate to navigating the strict expectations at NYU, and eventually finding her creative home in the New York comedy scene. Ivy shares deep insights into the mechanics of performance, the magic of teachi...

The "Of the Show" Fellas are here to talk all that pop! "Best Friend of the Show," Rob, and "Brother of the Show," Trey, join Jason to talk about the end of the Late Show, Stephen Colbert, how SNL picks hosts, and chats a little about the movies this Summer. As usual, it goes off the rails! Instagram: @WhenDovesPodcast, @ThereItIsPod, @JasonFarrPics  Threads: @ThereItIsPod, @JasonFarrPics Facebook...

We welcomed back one of our favorite guests, comedy writer and author John Vorhaus! John’s first appearance was one of our most concise and informative episodes, and his return didn't disappoint. Jason and John discuss the enduring legacy of his book, The Comic Toolbox, and dive deep into his new projects, including the upcoming expanded omnibus, The Comedy Writer's Companion and his deeply person...

This episode is the amazing LIVE taping in Brooklyn celebrating our 10th Anniversary! Jason was joined by "Brother of the Show," Trey and "Wife of the Show," Justina, for some surprises and we had performances from previous guests, Art Cai, Julia Schroeder, Myq Kaplan, and Seann Cantatore who also led a final special song. It was a special occasion and a great show! Big thanks to Young Ethel's in...

We talked to Actor, singer, and comedian Erin Richardson! Erin talks about growing up in Northern Virginia, studying voice and musical theater, and moving to New York City where she accidentally fell in love with improv after seeing UCB. She discusses her work across NYC, including performing with the independent sketch crew BoogieManja (on the team Cliff Hanger), and why aligned goals, strong dir...

In this mini episode, Jason makes a case for developing your talent over focusing your efforts on pursuing the big time. After hearing about musician Rick Beato's take on the industry and reading a response to that take from singer/songwriter, Mary Spender (Friend of the Show), Jason got to thinking about why it's so important for artists of any kind to develop. It's a thoughtful mini ep! Instagra...

In this mini episode, Jason talks about pre-show rituals. Do you have a routine you consistently do to get ready to perform? If not, Jason offers some suggestions for things you can do to set yourself up for a great show! He shares what he likes to do, what he'd like to do more often, and what he's seen others do before shows. A pre-show routine can be a great benefit, so try out these tips! Insta...

In this mini episode, Jason talks about the outdate term "straight man" in common. Many have offered the alternative "Voice of Reason" but Jason discusses why this term, while sometimes accurate, isn't always the most fitting. Jason offers "the grounding force" or "tone-setter" as a stronger alternative to "straight man" and he discusses why, giving examples, and how the logic can be used. Instagr...

We talked to Portland-based comedian, Jaren George! Jaren talks to Jason about moving from New York to San Francisco and Portland, starting stand-up after being drawn to the local Portland scene and wanting to improve public speaking. He discusses parallels between comedy and music, including playing in a band, and what he's learned from teaching kids. Jaren describes developing his storytelling,...

We got to talk to satirist Caitlin Kunkel! Jason sits down with Caitlin to trace her journey from collegiate distance swimmer to satire expert. Caitlin delves into how being an athlete led her to naturally merge sports psychology concepts with creative practice. She recounts the experiences that formed her comedy brain, working in Chicago theater fundraising, training and teaching at Second City,...

We got to talk to comedian, Matt Levy! Jason interviews comedian and filmmaker Matt Levy about parenting a three-year-old and collaborating with his wife, who appears in his shorts and has starred in his films. Matt recounts his early comedy path through high-school improv, speech and debate bits inspired by Andy Kaufman, and stand-up classes he took with his dad, plus working at the Tempe Improv....

Justina Sparling, joins us to talk about her fragrance education and experience entity, Eau Snap! "Wife of the Show" Justina discusses Eau Snap, her fragrance education and experience business that hosts events to teach people about perfume, help them find what they like, and build community through shared conversation. She talks to Jason about getting deeply into fragrance during the pandemic via...