At “Who in the Whatnow?: A Variety Show”, the audience is part of the show. Sometimes.

Beginning in December 2012, Man on the Street DC began producing a variety show called “Who in the Whatnow?”. While self-styled variety shows have gotten popular in the DC area, Whatnow is unique in its format, with gameshow elements, and unscripted performances from stand-up comedians that aren’t really improv either.

Some of the regular features at the Whatnow show are:

• Meet the Audience, where stand-up comics roast audience volunteers
• Hollywood Pitch Funtime, a live podcast hosted by David Coulter and Asif Khan
• News to Me, a weekend update format
• Make Me LOL, based on the old Make Me Laugh gameshow
• Yelp! Me Out Here, stream of consciousness commentary on venue reviews

The podcast contains highlights from the Whatnow Show #3, featuring News to Me (David Carter and Jheisson Nunez), Meet the Audience (Max Rosenblum, Petey Sugg, and Becca Steinhoff), Hollywood Pitch Funtime (w/ special guest Chris Milner), live music from Romane and Lettuce (Jamel Johnson and Romane Walters, with band), and an improvised courtroom trial.

Recorded live on April 26 at Beats Venue in Washington DC.

The post PODCAST #8: Highlights from “Who in the Whatnow?: A Variety Show #3″ appeared first on Man on the Street DC.

Nats Park, sans Umpires

On Wednesday, April 10th, the umpiring crew for the Nationals – White Sox game showed up late to the game, reportedly due to traffic. Thanks to our crack reporting staff,  and some other nebulous means of record, we’ve been able to obtain a copy of the conversation in the car en route to the stadium. What follows is a transcription of the conversstion between umpires Chris Guccione (home plate), Tom Hallion (first base), Ron Kulpa (second base), and Phil Cuzzi (third base) in a time of crisis all too familiar to resident of the nation’s capital.

- – -

CHRIS: Do you think the President’s going to be there? We’re going to look like assholes.
RON: I think all the presidents are there for every game.
PHIL: I don’t think he meant the mascots.
TOM: I can’t take much more of this.
CHRIS: We’re gonna be late. What do you think they’ll do?
TOM: We ARE late and they’re just going to have to wait for us. What else are they gonna do? Who else knows 60% of the rule book?
RON: These trees are pretty.
TOM: Look at this shit. This traffic is Taft’s fault. Pink flowers that last a week, what an clueless tub of goo he was.
RON: Is that Tidal Wave Basin? Have you ever done the paddle boats?
CHRIS: No, are they fun? Maybe we should take 17th?
TOM: This IS 17th.
PHIL: No it isn’t, it’s 16th.
TOM: There’s no 16th through the Mall, It’s 14th or 15th and 17th, those are the choices.
RON: There’s a mall? Where?
PHIL: Of course there’s a 16th, haven’t you ever heard of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave?
RON: GOOD MOVIE.
CHRIS: This traffic is ridiculous. I thought this place couldn’t vote or something. SHUT UP STOP HONKING I CAN’T GO ANYWHERE.
PHIL: Oh so THAT’s where the Corcoran is.
RON: Isn’t that the Treasury building?
CHRIS: No, I think it’s the DAR Red Cross Theatre. The back side of it is the Chamber of Congress building. Or depart f the Chamber of Commerce, whatever.
PHIL: Here we go, now we’re moving.
RON: Hey Tom, I have an idea.
TOM: Great, we’re in short supply of ideas.
RON: When Chase Headley comes back, I think you can move Martin Prado to the OF and just use Will Middlebrooks as a util-
TOM: SHUT THE F*$% UP, RONNIE.
CHRIS: Northwest? How many quandrants are there again?
TOM: What kind of piss poor education did you get?
PHIL: Lay off, Gooch, he was homeschooled in the social club. He’s not a map-reader, he’s got street smarts.
TOM: That makes no sense.
CHRIS: Good news, I can see the Holocaust Museum, that’s progress!
RON: Tom, do you still talk to your brother, Matt?
TOM: For the last time, his name is Holliday and he’s not my brother.
RON: I never hear from him anymore. At least Verlander sends me a Christmas card.
TOM: OK, I think I got it. We keep going on this road, then we veer off to the left, and go past the golf course, then we just have to keep the airport on our right and we should end up close enough that we can ask someone.
CHRIS: What’s the place called again?
TOM: Nats Park.
CHRIS: I know, but, what’s it’s proper name?
TOM: What do you mean?
CHRIS: Y’know like PNC Field, or Safeco, or PacBall or whatever. The name that everyone knows it by.
TOM: It’s just Nats Park. They don’t have a corporate sponsor.
CHRIS: Wait, seriously?
TOM: Yeah, it’s jus-
PHIL: HOW THE HELL ARE SUPPOSED TO FIND THE PLACE IF CORPORATE AMERICA DOESN’T EVEN KNOW WHERE IT IS?????
CHRIS: It’s over that way, I’m sure of it.
RON: Whoa, they built a dome????
TOM: That’s the Capital building, moron.
RON: Where the Congress lives?
PHIL: Wow, there are a lot of Belgian places on Yelp. Are we in France?
CHRIS: Can’t we just go to the Baltimore game?
RON: Guys, Headley hit 31 home runs last year? Where have I been?
CHRIS: Y’know what position he plays?
RON: I don’t know–
CHRIS and PHIL: THIRD BASE.
RON: Oh that’s right. I thought he played for the Phillies.
TOM: I hate you guys.

The post A Conversation Between Umpires Stuck in DC Traffic appeared first on Man on the Street DC.

Was more like About the Last 3 Years

David and Asif have another podcast, About Last Week, where generally they talk about TV, but we don’t watch much TV aside from sports, so we discuss odd jobs, including mascot work and trying out (unsuccessfully) to be one of the Washington Nationals Racing Presidents. Also, we pick up the guitar and play half a song.

Listen to the podcast here. Skip ahead to these parts if you like:

0:00 – TV, comedy, and stuff
18:00 – SWASTIKA!
21:00 – Mascot work!
29:45 – Racing presidents Tryouts
42:00 – Breaktime
46:00 – #overheardDC
53:00 – Professional hobos vs other “free-spirits”
59:00 – Mascots get physical, wedding photography may suck
1:01:30 – Getting yelled at about your mascot white paper
1:07:00 – The Pope and halloween smooches
1:11:11 – Shawshank and garbage trucks
1:15:30 – Next Who in the Whatnow?: A Variety Show plug
1:16:00 – “The Answer Is No” performance

The post Guest on About Last Week appeared first on Man on the Street DC.

Direct to BetaMax, in this case

It’s been quite around MOTS DC lately for a number of reasons, meaning we haven’t been doing our own podcast since the turn of the new year. But, that should be changing very soon, and we’ll be getting back on schedule.

In the meantime, we were the guest on this week’s Hollywood Pitch Funtime podcast, which you may remember from the last “Who in the Whatnow? A Variety Show.” Each week, David and Asif build a movie from scratch in 30 minutes. We provided the sponsor product, the genre, and, ultimately, a title. And in between, a lot of ill-conceived ideas.

Listen to the episode here.

ps. Make it to the end and you get a special musical performance.

The post Guest on Hollywood Pitch Funtime appeared first on Man on the Street DC.

“I hear a party or 12″ (Photo courtesy of OneMillionLyrics.com)

A preview of events this Halloween weekend and what memorable thoughts we expect to hear when eavesdropping on the folks next to us. Post your own on Twitter at the #OverheardDC hashtag. DO IT ALREADY.

FRIDAY 

BYT Halloween Party: The Temple of Doom & the Lost Crystal Skull Crusade at The Sphinx Club
“Almost as scary as Alley of Doom on U Street a few weeks ago”

History Haunt at Tudor Place Historic House and Garden
“We wanted to go the chocolate workshop, but it was sold out”

AC Newman + The Mynabirds at The Black Cat
“TOM HNATOW PLEASE LET ME BORROW YOUR BEARD”

National Champagne Day at Proof
“I am not toasting to the Zombie Apocolypse, Tyler”

Neon Nights 80′s Halloween Party at W Hotel Rooftop
“OMG you guys its just like a Legwarmers concert!!!”

Brick Penguin is Scared Halloween Comedy Show at the Goethe-Institute
“The Germans aren’t normally known for comedy but this schnitzel is HILARIOUS”

SATURDAY 

The Re-enactment of John Carlyle’s Funeral at Carlyle House Historic Park
“Our top story tonight, John Carlye is STILL DEAD”

Nightmare on M Street 2012 at The Front Page
“VERY APT TITLE”

2012 DC Zombie Lurch at Washington Monument
“Brains are good, but nothing fills me up like brawn”

Halloween ZombieFest at The Fairgrounds
“WHAT’S IN THE METAL CONTAINERRRRR????”

The 7 Deadly Sins Halloween Party at LivingSocial 918 F Street
“Bashful is my least favorite. Dopey’s not so great either, but I can work with that”

Halloween Science Laboratory 2 at Secret Location in DC
“I’ve got a particle accelerator and 2 beakers riding on Jubilee winning. What’s the spread?” “ABSOLUTE ZERO”

SUNDAY

Pumpkin Carving Contest at the Red Derby
“Your Todd Akin isn’t ghoulish enough” or “Nice teeth on that Biden pumpkin”

Drumline 2012 Live: Battle of the Bands at UMD Byrd Stadium
“I don’t know what beef is between you, but you’d better grill it up and eat it, because it is my ass that is on the line. Now I’m hungry”

National Symphony Orchestra Family Concert: Halloween Spooktacular! at Kennedy Center
“I love the ‘Imperial March’ from Star Wars, but it makes me think Romney just won the election”

Boo at the Zoo at National Zoological Park
“I think that’s a rat in a vulture costume”

The post OVERHEARD DC: Weekend Preview 10-26-12 appeared first on Man on the Street DC.

Cause DC, a new “philanthropub” near 9th & U St NW.

Sunday evening, I swung by the soft opening for Cause DC, a new “philanthropub” near 9th & U St NW. Normally, I don’t cover bar/restaurant openings since plenty of other sites have that territory covered, but this is a slightly different take on a familiar model.

The concept of a “philanthropub” is new in theory, although a comment on Borderstan makes something of a point: The Saloon has made a habit of working with The Kamal Foundation to raise money for school construction. The two-floor space hasn’t filed as a nonprofit, but will essentially operate like one, distributing its profits to charitable organizations it’s chosen to partner with. Among those enlisted already are Agora Partnerships and Martha’s Table.

They’ve already garnered an impressive amount of press coverage before opening. (While talking with Nick, one of the co-founders, he mentioned that CBS — national, not DC market — has inquired about doing a story.) Will it work? Who knows? Profit margins for bars are notoriously slim in many cases. Success will hinge in part on what type of crowd the place draws. The nearby late-night scene isn’t what the owners have in mind, most likely. The second floor does have a small stage and a number of ideas have been floated (some by yours truly) for events both casual and creative. Behind the stage is a mosaic-style sign composed of 1200 beer bottle which illuminate “CAUSE” in bold letters, done by local artist Kat Dean.

With a half dozen taps featuring local craft beers and a burger-heavy menu, it will be interesting what Cause DC turns into. The box-encapsulated branding is certainly reminiscent of a startup (“I drink because I care” t-shirts are apparently on the way.) I do like the tabletops finished with old maps, that’s a nice touch.

The post PHOTOS: Preview of Cause DC, a new philanthropub appeared first on Man on the Street DC.

Not being from the art world, I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect and my plan to interview folks at each stop was quickly made impractical by the size (and volume) of the event itself. Instead, I attempted to make it all 8 hours, start to finish, and document certain moments along the way. The result is a video I did on behalf of Pink Line Project. along with some photos I snapped. At Caos on F, I received the royal treatment, in the form of “Oh, sure, of course you can take some video! ANYTHING for Philippa!” That’s respect.

• Of the venues, the former Platinum nightclub was the largest and probably the coolest. I went dancing there exactly once, so I do remember the interior somewhat. Stripped bare in anticipation of a new tenant, the skeletal condition suited the pallet-based industrial artwork being showcased.
• Caos on F reminded me of Artomatic, with its series of small rooms. Also, the elevator was out, so I snuck up the staircase after the exit door swung open, avoiding the line. Media bias.
• There were lines to both F St NW venues, but combined they were dwarfed by the number of folks waiting to get into Ultra Bar. Apparently it’s not just a clever name.
• The video cuts off at the Alliance Francaise DC because there wasn’t too much going on at the time I was there, so I followed the noise up to 7th & F, where I found that brass band wailing away as the Kevin Hart show was letting out. Kevin Hart is doing arenas.
• While each stop had its share of trendy/arty folk, there was a strong representation from the everyman society, as I like to think of them. How often do you catch a dude in a backwards Cubs hat waiting in line to enter an art gallery? (see video)
• I didn’t drink all night. Still did’t make it to the end.

(This post is crossposted from the original at Pink Line Project.)

The post PHOTOS / VIDEO: Art All Night DC 2012 appeared first on Man on the Street DC.

Avoiding the microphone for a change, are we?

SM Shrake is the brains behind Story League, the only storytelling competition in the nation’s capital. Based partially on The Moth, Story League hosts monthly showcases at venues in Washington DC such as Busboys & Poets, the Black Cat, and the Kennedy Center.

SM join the podcast to talk about competition, Barbara Streisand, growing up in and returning to Detroit, and if storytelling could ever compete with other performance institutions. What’s that noise in the background? Well, it’s Looking Glass Lounge on a Monday night, just before Brandon Weatherbee‘s 8×8 showcase of comedy, storytelling, and music.

The post PODCAST #7: SM Shrake / Story League appeared first on Man on the Street DC.

Over the weekend, Union Market in northeast DC held its first (annual?) “Shuck Off,” where average Joes and Jills could show up, enjoy some seafood courtesy of Rappahannock Oyster Co., and then compete against a bonafide shucking champion. Or something like that. Travis from ROC admitted that the event came together somewhat at the last minute, so they were just going to have fun with it. To their credit, their bar was packed all afternoon.

Union Market opened in early September near Galludet University, in the midst of a string of much more rundown warehouses and merchants. The terminal is less grocery than Eastern Market, and is huge (47,000 sq ft), but only half occupied so far. As part of its promotional buzz as more businesses open there, the market is hosting regular events, including the upcoming Crafty Bastards Festival in early November. OK, back to oysters.

Shucking oysters, defined, is very simply removing the shell from the equation. Are there festivals dedicated to the trade? You bet. In this case, the 100-year-old, family-owned Rappahannock decided to stage a small, but faithful version of the shucking contest, with one added twist: all contestants would be competing against George “Shooter” Hastings, the company’s ace-in-the-hole shucker. Think about that: Shooter was shucking all day, then took a “break” to compete in a shucking contest, before returning to his job, shucking.

The competition was a 5-minute race. At the conclusion, all oysters shucked by the field would be tallied against Shooter’s. While the pro worked efficiently and quietly, a number of the contestants could tell pretty quickly how difficult and precise the skill is. I heard some moans. Broken shells were disqualified. A crowd of maybe 100 gathered to watch. Although not the most thrilling of spectator sports, I like any event that allows folks to attempt (and subsequently respect) a technical skill.

Final count: Contestants 47, Shooter 42. Contestants won cash. I could not believe that, but it happened. Also, everyone ate the spoils of the contest. Nice touch.

The post PHOTOS / VIDEO: Union Market Shuck Off appeared first on Man on the Street DC.

“Man, it sounds like A-ROD is PISSED” (Photo courtesy of OneMillionLyrics.com)

A preview of events this weekend and what memorable thoughts we expect to hear when eavesdropping on the folks next to us. Written while at The Coupe, which featured a couple next to us breaking up (“Here’s how you can check in on me from now on”) and a terrible internet connection. Post your own on Twitter at the #OverheardDC hashtag.

FRIDAY, October 12

Beyond Lunch Bytes, Part II: A New Aesthetic? at Hirshhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden
“I don’t know, I don’t mind going back to lunch bites, do we really need to get beyond them?”

The French Underground at the Embassy of France
“I requested ‘Zou Bisou Bisou’ but haven’t heard it yet, have you?”

Carpe Noctem: 6th Annual Turning the Page Gala at the Washington Post
“WOODSTEIN!!!!!!!!!! Always wanted to do that.”

The Purple Bunny Project: Third Annual Wig Night at Mad Rose Tavern
“I’ve had this wig ever since I took 5^th place in a Liza Mannelli lookalike contest”

Cardinals at Nationals, Game 5 of the NLDS, Nationals Stadium
“We win this game, I’m gonna tear down Half Str- Oh wait”

SATURDAY, October 13

The Capital Club 25th Annual Swine on the Vine at St. Julian
“How long til they make the movie ‘WineFest’? They did, it’s called ‘Sideways’”

Oyster Shucking Competition at Union Market
“AWWWWWWW YOU YOU YOU YOU YOU SHUCK!”

Snallygaster Craft Beer Festival at The Yards Park
“This beer might be sustainable, but my ability to wait in line for a Marzan probably isn’t”

Nerd Nite at DC9 Nightclub
“I first became a libertarian because of Spock, but I’ve always admired Riker’s hawkishness”

SUNDAY, October 14

Sundate: Music at the Phillips at The Phillips Collection
“I heard Charlie Albright on NPR. I hope he collaborates with Diane Rehm somehow.”

Jewish Literary Film Festival Opening Night at Washington Hebrew Congregation
“Must. Not. Ask. Chabon. About. Katie. Holmes.”

The post OVERHEARD DC: Weekend Preview 10-12-12 appeared first on Man on the Street DC.