The Flyover Comedy Festival presented the highlight of its three-day, multi-venue run on Friday at the historic Stifel Theatre, a 3,083 capacity venue in the heart of Downtown St. Louis. Featuring four acts, the festival’s headline show boasted the veteran stand-up headliners Patton Oswalt and Tig Notaro.
Opening to a packed house, up and coming comedian Kari Assad took the stage to kick things off. Diving into her set, she focused mainly on generic touchstones like her ethnicity and her current relationship. Tangibly less experienced and a little shaky, she mostly held her own with one-liner punches and warmed up the crowd. She displayed a tick you’ll see in a lot of younger or less experienced comedians where they have the tendency to add a little “so, um” immediately after a risqué punch, unable to sit in the understandably awkward silence while the audience is reacting and not just letting the moment land. While not as strong as the upcoming lineup, she did well to warm the room and lightly MC’d the rest of the evening.
Second up, an unexpected delight: Rafe Williams’ southern charm and instant relatability set him apart from the opener as he deftly won over a packed (and obviously liberal leaning) house, dressed in Southern garb. Easily the second biggest surprise of the night (we’ll get to the first in a moment), Williams displayed genuine talent, excellent pacing, and hilarious subject matter; his comfort and ease added to the ‘Aw Shucks’ charm he exuded as he delved into his trailer park upbringing and odd family quirks. It came as no shock that he has recently filmed an upcoming comedy special, and I predict big things for him in the future.
The most notable (if not infamous) set of the night belonged to veteran stand-up Tig Notaro, but ironically through no action of her own. The Mississippi native’s set featured her delightful signature deadpan riffing about her non-traditional family life as part of a lesbian couple with two young children. About halfway through her set, pontificating about the differences in communication styles of her and her partner, an audible retch was heard from one of the front rows. Tig, quick on her feet, immediately riffed off the outburst and kept going. However, concerns grew from the audience surrounding the source, a concerned voice called out to the stage; this was serious. A woman was vomiting uncontrollably and needed medical attention. Tig instantly hopped into action asking the house for a doctor. Staff and production rushed to the incident, the house lights came up, gasps and murmurs everywhere. Tig stood around awkwardly and was eventually ushered backstage.
The venue staff and medical team huddled around the woman. We all sat, lights on, no idea how serious the issue was, unsure if the show would or even could continue. More than 20 minutes later, the lights came back down and Tig reclaimed the stage to thunderous applause. Apparently the alleged ‘medical emergency’ was merely a drunk woman who had vomited all over a packed orchestra pit then refused to leave. As Tig acknowledged the awkwardness of the situation, she attempted to regain her footing and pick up where she left off.
Here’s the thing though: Comedy is all about timing and mood and that huge interruption tangibly altered the rest of the night. It seems Patton Oswalt, the eternal professional gentleman, ceded part of his time as headliner to allow Tig to finish and thus clearly cut his final act short. Oswalt could feel the energy had shifted in the room, certain punchlines didn’t quite land as expected, and he would use that as an opportunity to win the crowd back by cycling back to riffing on the interruption. His abbreviated set was typical Oswalt: part memoir about his past, part observational humor about pop culture and cultural taboos. While enjoyable, Oswald simply didn’t have the time required to rebuild the atmosphere or deep dive into the set he might have had planned in the less than 30 minutes left allotted to him. | Joseph C Roussin
The Flyover Comedy Festival was held November 14-16 at venues around St. Louis. Keep an eye out for information on next year’s festival at flyovercomedyfest.com.
