Something I Wrote, Part 3: "The Rehearsal" Comedy Sketch

"Ohhhh...YEAH!"

In sort-of-honor of the passing of Randy Savage, I've decided to post my only wrestling-based comedy sketch.

This one was actually performed a few times, and it usually went well, mainly because it's short. It began as a much longer version, but my writing teacher suggested I go in a slightly different (and shorter and better) direction.

In many ways I prefer the long version, but it's an example of a sketch that looks really great as I'm writing it (and perhaps as you're reading it), but when you rehearse it, it just doesn't work. The timing doesn't come through, and it drags in spots you weren't expecting.

But that's the difference between writing that's meant to be read and writing that's meant to be performed. Not every piece of writing works in both formats. I always wonder whether my novels, if I were ever to finish any of them, would be entertaining to read aloud if I were fortunate to hold a book reading/signing.

But before I'll ever know that, I'd have to actually complete a novel first. I know I just wrote that; I'm just emphasizing the fact that I have a number of unfinished novels.

So enjoy the finished version, and snap into a Slim Jim for our deceased ring hero. May you finally enjoy the company of Elizabeth, Macho Man.

Something I Wrote, Part 2: "Bread Crumbs" Comedy Sketch

Don't ask.

Last week I showed you a comedy sketch that I'd written. This week I'll show you another comedy sketch I've written.

The difference between the two is that last week's sketch, "The Eye Has It," has been performed — more than once, with different players — and has gotten laughs in both rehearsal and performance. It's usually my go-to piece when someone wants to review a sample of my comedic work.

The sketch I'm about to present has resulted in odd looks and nervous laughter during the couple of rehearsals and classes in which I've unleashed it. It has never been performed live.

I once took a sketch-writing class with Ian Roberts, who was in the core Upright Citizens Brigade quartet when Amy Poehler was just another underground improv comedienne. (When I took the class, I believe she was just a "featured player" on SNL.)

I considered it an honor to be in a class taught by Roberts, but he seemed rather depressed most of the time when he taught our class. He did give great criticism of our work, but the sketch I'm presenting today completely stumped him. He said that he honestly didn't know what to say about it.

I also brought it out for a comedy-writing class I took with D.B. Gilles, a great writing teacher from NYU and author of books including The Screenwriter Within. His criticism of the sketch, as far as I remember, resulted in a very heated argument between us. I can't remember why, nor do I blame him.

Anyway, I bet you can't wait to read it, right? Here goes! (I should also mention that Mrs. The Anthony Show hates it more than anything I've ever written, and that includes letters to all my ex-girlfriends she discovered the night before we married.)

Something I Wrote, Part 1: "The Eye Has It" Comedy Sketch

I never actually broke a leg, or
any bones, for that matter.

It's been a while since I've shared examples of the great many works of writing that I have either abandoned or maintain in a state of suspended animation. I thought it would be an unsolicited change of pace to post examples of the work I actually completed.

I've done a good deal of sketch-comedy writing and performing, and some of my most rewarding moments in life involve performing my own work on stage for laughs. Since the kids showed up I haven't been able to do much on the sketch front, and in many cases sketch comedy seems to be a young-person-who-lives-in-the-city's game, but I hope someday to get back into it.

What follows is an example of one of my sketches. The way it ends is not very easy to stage, so I've performed it with a slightly different ending, which really doesn't make an overall difference.