Bawdy/Blue/Vaudville/Burlesque comedy acts

[Analogue_Skywalker]

I am going to be auditioning for the role of a burlesk mc for a local (KC) burlesque act.

Can anyone point me in the direction of acts I should learn from timing, how to act the part, material i might want to listen or read for inspiration, films on the subject!

Please let me know

thanks!

[Rachael_Rage]

Try this thread.

[bienville]

One pretty good source that oughta be easy enough to find . . .

Go out and rent some Bette Midler concert videos. Hell, if you’re seriously into this kinda thing, go out and buy them- and study them.

Of course, Midler fans already know where I’m going with this, I’m directing you towards Midler’s Sophie Tucker character (yes, there was also a real life performer named Sophie Tucker). As Sophie, Midler recounts stories always revolving around Sophie, her boyfriend Ernie, and her best friend Clementine. Classic bawdy comedy kinda stuff. I think most of the material is made up of standard stock jokes, so feel free for practice purposes to steal the jokes, tell them to your friends to see if you can tell them as well as she does.

I will never forget it you know. I was in bed one night with my boyfriend Ernie and he said to me, “Soph, how come you never tell me when you’re having an orgasm?” I said to him, “Ernie, you’re never around!”

I will never forget it you know, my girlfriend Clemintine was a lady of the evening…and the morning and the night and the noon. One night I overheard her negotiating with a customer. She said “That’s going to cost you a hundred dollars.” The customer said “A hundred dollars?! For heaven’s sake, the Dutch bought the island of Manhattan for a mere $24.”

“That’s right,” said Clemintine, “but Manhattan just lies there.”

One time I came home from a Doctor’s appointment.

I said “Ernie, guess what? The doctor said I have the constitution of a 20 year old girl. He says I have the heart, lungs, and liver of a 20 year old girl.” Ernie looked me up and down. He said “Hey, did he mention your 80 year old ass.” I said “No, we didn’t talk about you!”

I will never forget it you know. Doorbell rang the other day, answered the door and there was a delivery boy there with two dozen roses. I grabbed the card I opened it,
it said “Love, from your boyfriend Ernie”

I was having tea with my girlfriend Clementine. I said “Clementine, do you know what this means? For the next two weeks I’m gonna be flat on my back with my legs wide open.”

Clemintine says to me “What’s the matter, ain’t you got a vase?”

and my all-time favorite . . .

I will never forget it you know. I was in bed last night with my boyfriend Ernie and he said to me, “Soph, you got no tits and a tight box.” I said to him, “Ernie. Get off my back!”

[BrainGlutton]

Incredibly ancient gag, possibly of burlesque provenance:

DOCTOR: Nurse! Nurse! Do we have any corn starch?

NURSE: Certainly, Doctor! Walk this way! [crosses stage in a knees-tight-together walk]

DOCTOR: If I could walk that way, I wouldn’t need the corn starch!

[Exapno_Mapcase]

Look at The Sunshine Boys. The vaudeville sketch in the movie is quite similar to real sketches by such artists as Smith and Dale. They did the “Dr. Kronkite” sketch with jokes just as bad as you can imagine:

DOCTOR: Dif you have this pain before?
PATIENT: Yes.
DOCTOR: Well, you have it again.

[Eve]

Some early talkie shorts have just been released on DVD. Obviously, they will not be “blue,” but they might give you some flavor of the period and the acts.

[BrainGlutton]

@Analogue Skywalker

Bawdy/Blue/Vaudville/Burlesque comedy acts

Nitpick: You would never have seen a blue or bawdy skit in a show – it was strictly family entertainment. [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burlesque]Burlesque was a kind of spinoff form.

[BrainGlutton]

@BrainGlutton

Nitpick: You would never have seen a blue or bawdy skit in a show – it was strictly family entertainment. [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burlesque]Burlesque was a kind of spinoff form.

See the musical Rose, aka Gypsy, about the life of Gypsy Rose Lee. Mama Rose spends years trying to launch her daughter Louise’ career in Vaudeville, with intermittent success. Finally they are reduced to working a burlesque show. One of the strippers: “Vaudeville! Everybody knows there ain’t no Vaudeville no more except burlesque!”

[Exapno_Mapcase]

@BrainGlutton

See the musical Rose, aka Gypsy, about the life of Gypsy Rose Lee. Mama Rose spends years trying to launch her daughter Louise’ career in Vaudeville, with intermittent success. Finally they are reduced to working a burlesque show. One of the strippers: “Vaudeville! Everybody knows there ain’t no Vaudeville no more except burlesque!”

A throwoff line in a musical is a cite? You were right in the first place. Shoulda left it alone.

Real cites on the evolution and devolution of vaudeville and burlesque and the relation between can be found in No Applause–Just Throw Money : The Book That Made Vaudeville Famous, by Trav S.D.