Bleav in The Comedy Bureau Field Report

Such are the times that being a a brown-skinned comedian, much less one from a country South of the U.S. border, is, shall we say, dicey. That's only one of a myriad of reasons why Chilean comedian, now U.S. citizen Fabrizio Copano made sure to secure his status as an American citizen before releasing his latest special (given Trump's penchant for wanting kick everyone who isn't licking his boots...

The comedy of Beth Stelling offers up a warmth and a joy that feels rarer and rarer in this world. Even when she does a whole special about a toxic landlord, Stelling's voice is such a great relief. We chit chat in-depth with Beth about the journey to such a unique special (and how you'd even go about making a special focused on how much of a nightmare one person can be when they're in charge of y...

4319 Melrose Ave. in Los Angeles has long been a home for alt comedy and despite the insanely chaotic times we live in, it will continue to be that way, in large part due to the efforts of Isaac Landfert . Formerly the YARD Theater, that venue will live on as The Stray Theater and continue on to be a space even more dedicated to its mission in the LA comedy scene. We talk about the preservation of...

Much of the pervasive strangeness of these times is that there is palpable feeling of everything coming to an end, all while many, small everyday things in many people's lives weirdly continuing for the time being. We get into the thick of doing/talking about/philosophizing about comedy in such an obtuse moment in history with the marvelous, internationally touring Lisa Curry just as she is about...

Building an hour of stand-up, especially the first time you do it, is already hard enough with having no experience doing so. In 2025, with the ways of the world, both actual and of comedy, the consideration and craft that has to be put into an bonafide great first hour of stand-up comedy can feel near infinite. That's why we chatted all about this very process with the endlessly funny Bri Pruett...

In such dire times, the roles of comedy being both offering a salve to reality and speaking truth to power can seem to be at odds with each other. However, there are ways to walk such a tight line and we talk with celebrated veteran indie comedy producer Ali Hart ( Peacock , The Frogtown Show , Slick Burn ) on the intersection of comedy and trying to get folks to come around to making a better wor...

Romance and the quest for it will forever remain fertile ground for comedy no matter how the art form changes and evolves. IG/Tik Tok sensation Walker Ward marches, or, more accurately, pedals, forward in this regard with Pedicab Connections by picking up strangers looking for love in a pedicab and makes an earnest attempt to match them with someone in real life, no apps needed. For this week's TC...

While many of you have to come, know, and love the fantastic Shannon O'Neill through improv and wherever you watch TV, she has discovered another marvelous facet of herself through her work in ceramics. In fact, she's just about to close out her very first exhibition Beat One at The Empty Circle in Brooklyn and was very keen on infusing a comedic spirit into the whole experience of making, present...

From just the look of Big Break , David Drake 's third and latest hour, you might be surprised that Drake has helped build an entire corner of NYC comedy through the hallowed ground of The Gutter in Brooklyn (that also happens to be a lovely bowling alley). Between CYSKNYC and his multiple hour special in the space, Drake has gotten himself into rarefied air of making 80 minutes of stand-up very,...

At the same time, comedy can indeed speak truth to power and also express joy from one's unique perspective, but it can be quite the balancing act to do both at the same time. One wondrous Linzy Beltran manages the feat with a bold stroke of unabashed silliness with her solo show El Mago Loco , currently playing at the Hollywood Fringe. For this week's TCB Field Report, we explore Linzy's own expl...

Almost always, the work that goes into a deeply personal solo show is almost entirely invisible. There are years of work and reworking and giving up and getting re-obsessed that drive a person to create something possibly so unique and inspiring and hilarious and then perform over and over and over and over again only to have audiences marvel an hour at a time. Erica Bitton and her work with her a...

Julie Seabaugh has been and still very much is one of our absolute favorite people in comedy because, like us, she has dedicated blood, sweat, and tears to the telling of stories of, about, in, and around comedy. Following her endeavors as an esteemed journalist, author, and documentarian, Julie's latest work focuses on the comedy icon Marc Maron following the passing of his partner, Lynn Shelton...

A lot of what has been dug up from the 90s, mostly by Gen Z, has kind of been a rude look into the mirror for Millennials, but acclaimed, veteran screenwriter Victoria Male has cooked up a comedy feature, Whatever Happened to Baby J? , that is taking a much more favorable look into the 90s, so much so that the one and only Jodie Sweetin (as well as Drew Seeley and stacked cast) is going to be part...

The undertaking of putting on a live comedy show can be a lot, but putting on a full scale, multi-week, improvised parody of a celebrated TV franchise is a whole other sport. Yet, that seems to be Sam Walt Jones ' favorite thing to do as he is just about to cap off his third season of Survivor: Island of Idiots , one of the most ambitious comedy productions we've ever come across. We get into the...

Cory Peter Lane, Jeremy Elder, and Hunter Sailing, better known collectively as the wondrously rambunctious Business Casual, are leveling up to having their very own ranch of controlled chaos with their new show on All Things Comedy, the aptly named The Business Casual Show . We catch up with the boys on this week's TCB Field Report on getting in on their process for pitching and running bits for...

These days, the notion of representation mattering is more crucial than it has been in a long time, especially when it comes to trans/gender non-conforming/non-binary folks. Thank goodness for the likes of people such as Laser Webber , a do-it-all performer/producer in all worlds in and around comedy, music, and theater to co-found The Joy Who Lived , a festival celebrating trans and gnc comedy/pe...

The brilliant Alexis Dubus has made an entire career out of not only playing a character, but playing a misanthropic Frenchman, Marcel Lucont and that presents quite a winding path here in 2025, especially as Dubus is set to play a handful of American dates as Lucont coming up very soon. We have a badinage as well as an in-depth chat about Alexis' journey in and out of himself and Marcel and how h...

Still, to this day, Rebecca Drysdale is one of the funniest improvisers we've ever seen. Coupled with her vast writing experience, we'll take any chance to have her on TCB Field Report and what a chance it was for this episode. We legitimately intertwine The Force from Star Wars into improv theory and practice (along with some other IP based metaphors) for a marvelously comedy philosophy heavy epi...

At a time where AI is threatening writing jobs and Trump is mercilessly dismantling all the DEI initiatives that he can, a hybrid improv/writers show, Pilot Season , rises, phoenix-like, from the rubble of the WGA Strike. Hosts/creators Chris De La Cruz and Saleh Karaman lead a packed improv show that creates a freshly baked before the audience eyes and ears where some of the most accomplished TV...

A comedy festival premised on the idea of punching up and calling it the absurdity of those in power and also providing space for representation for those that are in the margins is now, more so than in a long time, pretty crucial. Thank goodness to the Yes And... Laughter Lab Comedy Festival AKA the YALL Comedy Fest . This week's TCB Field Report chats with the leadership team at YALL Comedy, Mik...

Skyler Higley and MANDAL are on the precipice of making what very well may be LA's next stand up to always be at with GUARANTEED! presented by Vulture (and produced by our very own Jake Kroeger). The trio breaks down launching this very special show (as well as the use of RICO charges in crime thrillers). Follow Skyler @ skylerhigley and MANDAL @ themandalman and get tix for GUARANTEED every 2nd &...

Even though improv had one of the longest roads back from COVID, it's back and more expansive than we remember. Sarah Claspell, a longtime celebrated veteran of improv in LA, walks us, on this week's TCB Field Report, through how that's happening both with her touring the world doing/teaching improv and co-owning the World's Greatest Improv School (affectionately pronounced WEE-gis) and the best w...

The wonderful Kristal Adams packed up from LA a few years ago and journeyed to the America's other comedy mecca, NYC. Adams had definitely established herself in the scene in LA, but opted for the wealth of stage time that New York. Over the last few years, Kristal has not only risen in that scene, but built up a wondrous independent show at multi-purpose bookstore, P&T Knitwear, Bookstore, Co...

Legendary weekly comedy show, Hot Tub with Kurt Kristen , just marked its 20th year anniversary this past weekend and, for now, has come to its end. It marks the end of an era and the wonderment of what lies ahead with the new era ahead. As such, we talk with long time Hot Tub co-producer Joel Mandlekorn (shout out to his co-producer/partner Mandee Johnson as well for making Hot Tub one of LA come...

Teresa Lo still very much is a fiercely determined up and coming stand-up comedian in the vast and highly competitive LA comedy scene. The proof rests in the fact that she is returning to telling jokes on stage after being violently assaulted at an open mic by a comedian who took issue with how he was portrayed in the documentary  Breaking the Fourth Wall , a film covering the LA comedy open mic s...