Moreintelligentlife.com is the website of Intelligent Life magazine. Articles about Arts, Lifestyle, Travels, and Ideas

“Introductions are always weird for me because my name is Hari and it’s constantly mispronounced," laments Hari (pronounced HUH-ree) Kondabolu at the start of his recent stand-up special on Comedy Central Presents. "‘Hurry’, ‘Hairy’—there are different ways to screw it up, and it leads to these awkward conversations.” Mr Kondabolu then goes on to say how excited he was to meet a man named Deyf in Portland—that is, until he learns that the man had legally changed his name from Dave. “That is not my problem,” Mr Kondabolu says through gritted teeth. “That is clearly a Portland, Oregon-based problem", a city so progressive that it doesn't "spay or neuter its hippy population.”

Comedy fans are likely to become more familiar with Mr Kondabolu, whose star is on the rise. A New York City-native, he got his start in comedy while working as an immigrant-rights organiser in Seattle. After earning a degree in comparative politics, he went on to earn a Masters in Human Rights from the London School of Economics in 2008. He recently switched to comedy full-time.  In an interview with More Intelligent Life, he talks to us about his provocative brand of comedy, the art of stand-up and how irritating it is to always be compared with Aziz Ansari—another Indian-American comedian (who plays a lead role in the hit sitcom “Parks and Rec”).
 read more »

By now you've read the rave reviews of "Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work", a documentary about the comedienne directed by Ricki Stern and Annie Sundberg. Roger Ebert called it a fascinating "portrait of a woman who will not accept defeat, who will not slow down, who must prove herself over and again." Manohla Dargis watched the film twice and deemed it "convulsively funny". Entertainment Weekly gave the film an "A". If the critics haven't convinced you to spend 85 minutes in the presence of the septuagenarian diva—and, given her oeuvre, I don't blame you—here are three more reasons to get yourself to the cinema.  read more »

Penis jokes are a hoary chestnut of the stand-up comedian. Ever hear the one about the Catholic who converts to three different branches of Judaism and—surprise!—gets circumcised anew each time? You will if you go see "Circumcise Me", an autobiographical one-man, off-Broadway show by Yisrael Campbell.

Yisrael—Chris to his friends back in Penn-Wynne, Pennsylvania—has been telling the true story of his conversions and genital depredations for a few years now, mainly through a club stand-up routine. "Circumcise Me" is a wider project, his first aimed at a general audience, which weaves the wince-inducing aspects into a larger meditation on spirituality, alcoholism, Middle East politics and life in Florida. Dressed, as he puts it, “for 17th-century Poland” (black hat, black coat, beard and peyot, or religious side curls), Campbell is surprisingly nonplussed for someone who has just made the jump from playing events at Jewish community centres to an extended run off-Broadway.

After a show one night, Campbell sat down with More Intelligent Life to answer a few questions about jokes, Judaism, faith and cheeseburgers.

More Intelligent Life: I’ve seen your stand-up act (in the Berkshires). This is your first one-man show, and it has a lot more sadness and drama. Have you recently been exploring your emotional side?

Yisrael Campbell: I’ve been doing for years the hour of stand-up you saw. I wanted [this show] to be more relevant to both Jewish and non-Jewish groups. I picked up a producer along the way, and she sold me on the idea that it had to be a piece of theatre. Unless your name is Jackie Mason, people want to see a dramatic arc.  read more »

Edinburgh Festival-goers get used to coming across a lot of shows that are good, and very few that are top-class. This year, one show was streets ahead of the rest: “The Last Stand to Reason” by the Pajama Men, two men from Albuquerque who always perform in their pyjamas, possibly because they could make you laugh in their sleep.

They received almost off-puttingly good reviews–five stars apiece from the Times, the Guardian and the Telegraph. I bought eight tickets for a group ranging from an impatient nine-year-old to some jaded forty-somethings, and then sat there wondering if the experience could possibly live up to all the praise. It did. The show was funnier than the funniest comedian, even though it slowly revealed itself as theatre rather than comedy–the breakneck sketches are all connected, forming a great tapestry of observational wit.

Shenoah Allen is the one on the left with the rubber face; Mark Chavez is the one with the ruffle-worthy hair. Together they are electrifying. “We know each other so well,” one of them says, “we sometimes finish one another’s...” – "...Sandwiches,” says the other.

"The Last Stand to Reason",  Soho Theatre, London, December 7th to January 9th

~ TIM DE LISLE