Vaudeville is Back – Ian Abramson Presents Comics, Music, and Even a UFO Expert

This week I checked out Modern Vaudeville, a show presented by experimental comedian Ian Abramson. It was a fun night with comedians, performers showing their musical talents, and one UFO expert. The show took place at The Lyric Hyperion in the Silver Lake neighborhood of LA. Though Patton Oswalt was not at the show I attended, he is scheduled to perform 3 out of the 4 shows during the month long run.

I enjoyed the variety aspect of the show. I love stand up, but to see different kinds of acts in-between was refreshing. It switched things up and kept the energy going.

Comedy Meets Music – and the Paranormal

The majority of the acts were stand up comedians. Jesse Elias performed Through Heaven’s Eyes from the 1998 film The Prince of Egypt while other comics had more traditional stand up sets. Other comics included Rory Scovel, Dave Merheje, Luis Lemus, Tom Thakkar, Ron Funches, and The Puterbaugh Sisters.

I was delighted to see UFO expert Preston Dennett. This kind of stuff is right up my alley, so I was thrilled when I heard he would be a part of the show. I consider myself skeptical, but I enjoy this kind of material. Preston did not discuss UFOs, but instead dove into lucid dreaming and out-of-body experiences. I am relatively familiar with lucid dreaming in my personal life, so I was excited to listen. However, I worried there might be scoffs or giggles from the rest of the audience. To my surprise, everyone was absolutely on board with Preston. I took a peek around the crowd a few times and everyone seemed to be giving Preston their full attention, laughing at humorous observations made by him and listening quietly during the wild accounts of his out-of-body experiences.

A Surprise Ending for the Last Performer

The last act was someone special to Ian. Janor Hypercleats performed his wacky Mr. TV act wearing his signature gold sequin suit jacket. He had a collection of props, puppets and puns. When he was finished, Ian thanked Janor for performing on his show, and then revealed to Janor that they had actually met years before on Venice Beach when Ian was 12 years old. Janor was surprised, and he admitted he couldn’t remember meeting Ian as a child. Ian told Janor that they had spent the day together on the beach while Janor was street performing. Ian told Janor that he had inspired him that day. It was a cute moment for the audience.

Ian is putting on the show every Tuesday in March, so check out the next Modern Vaudeville experience and follow Ian Abramson on Twitter @ianabramson

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Sarah Jacobs

Originally from Seattle, Sarah Jacobs is a Los Angeles-based writer and stand up open-micer trying to figure out how to keep the bombings to a minimum. She is usually found at coffee shops writing and listening to Doom Metal.
Sarah Jacobs
Sarah Jacobs
Originally from Seattle, Sarah Jacobs is a Los Angeles-based writer and stand up open-micer trying to figure out how to keep the bombings to a minimum. She is usually found at coffee shops writing and listening to Doom Metal.