{"id":48230,"date":"2021-05-06T08:44:23","date_gmt":"2021-05-06T12:44:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/?p=48230"},"modified":"2021-05-06T08:44:31","modified_gmt":"2021-05-06T12:44:31","slug":"on-stage-unique-background-drives-laceys-comedy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/?p=48230","title":{"rendered":"On Stage: Unique background drives Lacey’s comedy"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Denny Dyroff<\/strong>, Entertainment Editor, The Times<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Shapel Lacey<\/p><\/div>\n

Standup comedians follow different paths before arriving at their careers in comedy.<\/p>\n

One popular current comic grew up as one of the few black teens in a poor white neighborhood in Arizona.<\/p>\n

One spent time as a guitarist in a punk rock band prior to becoming a professional comic.<\/p>\n

One attended college on a cheerleading scholarship.<\/p>\n

One is a devoted fan of Oasis still waiting for a reunion by the Gallagher brothers.<\/p>\n

Guess what?<\/p>\n

All four of these descriptions fit Shapel Lacey, who is headlining at Helium Comedy Club (2031 Sansom Street, Philadelphia, philadelphia.heliumcomedy.com<\/a>) from May 6-8.<\/p>\n

\u201cI grew up in Mesa, Arizona \u2013 born and raised there,\u201d said Lacey, during a phone interview Wednesday morning from his home in Los Angeles. <\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m a desert rat. The whole neighborhood \u2013 it was a poor neighborhood. It was a lot of fun. The whole town loved the \u2018Jackass\u2019 TV show. They were \u2018Jackass\u201d crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJackass\u201d was reality\u00a0comedy television series on MTV than ran three seasons on MTV starting on 2000 and featuring West Chester\u2019s Bam Margera.<\/p>\n

\u201cI skateboarded \u2013 still do,\u201d said Lacey. \u201cWhen I was young, I worked at Wal-Mart. I lasted two weeks. I figured there had to be more to life than working at Wal-Mart.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was also a cheerleader. When I was younger, I taught myself backflips. I was into martial arts. I got into cheerleading in high school because I had a crush on this girl I went to school with. I was in a punk rock band and she was the drummer\u2019s sister.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cheerleading provided Lacey with a path out of Arizona.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was at a cheerleading class in Dallas and that led to me going to Trinity Valley Community College in East Texas. From there, I got a full ride to be a cheerleader at the University of Louisville. That was 11 years ago.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen, I dropped out of college and got in comedy in Louisville. My friends just dared me to do it. After that show, people said \u2013 you\u2019re a funny dude. I got on stage and here I am today.\u201d<\/p>\n

Music was Lacey\u2019s entertainment of choice prior to comedy.<\/p>\n

\u201cI listened to a lot of music when I was young,\u201d said Lacey. \u201cMy mom was really into music \u2013 old school classic R&B. I was always intrigued by it. I\u2019d go down and listen to music at night when everyone was sleeping.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne night, I switched stations and heard \u2018Mississippi Queen\u2019 by Mountain and that led me to punk rock. I liked the loudness \u2013 and it had a soulfulness to it. The first punk rock band I got into was Black Flag in the Henry Rollins era.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just loved the motion behind it. You get that young angst, and you feel it. I played guitar in punk bands. I always tell people \u2013 punk is in my blood. I just let it rip. I love bands like G.B.H. and Black Flag. Punk helps you understand your own individuality.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lacey\u2019s most preferred band doesn\u2019t fit his predilection for punk rock.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy favorite band is Oasis,\u201d said Lacey. \u201cI wish the brothers would get back together. That\u2019s what I really want to see happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

After his start in comedy, Lacey put his comic career on hold.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had stopped doing comedy for two years,\u201d said Lacey. \u201cI was depressed. After a while, a friend said \u2013 I\u2019m putting you up for a big comedy show. It was a sold-out show at the Tempe Improv. It was the first time I ever felt real onstage.<\/p>\n

\u201cI worked in Arizona for a while \u2013 but there was a ceiling. So, I moved to California. I kinda said \u2013 I\u2019m just going. I moved to East Hollywood. My first apartment was so small the bed took up the entire space. Now, I live near Hancock Park not far from Koreatown.<\/p>\n

\u201cI liked it. It was a fresh start. Making it there is a testament to your work ethic. I was just starting a square one. I started doing open mics. Moving up happened for me quicker than most. No-one knew me but I knew I had good stuff.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf it\u2019s good enough, people will get to know. I had strong material and used it to move up. After about a year, people who were higher up wanted to give me a start. One of my first big shows was at The Comedy Store.\u201d<\/p>\n

Like everyone in the entertainment world, Lacey\u2019s career was sidetracked by the COVID-19 shutdowns.<\/p>\n

\u201cBefore the pandemic, I was performing a lot \u2013 shows every night,\u201d said Lacey. \u201cIt was show after show. Now, it\u2019s starting to trickle back \u2013 especially with outside shows.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lacey has developed his own style of comedy.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just talk about my life and my world and try to bring people into it,\u201d said Lacey. \u201cA lot of it is about me. When I jumped back on stage after a two-year break, I really felt it.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt felt so natural. It was the first time I felt really good on stage. I can talk about my life and I\u2019m comfortable doing it.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis will be my first time to do a show in Philadelphia. I\u2019m really looking forward to it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for Shapel Lacey — https:\/\/youtu.be\/GOg9Au_5Qr0<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The shows at the Helium Comedy Club will start at 8 p.m. on March 6 and 7:15 and 9:30 p.m. on March 7 and 8.<\/p>\n

Tickets, which are not sold individually because of capacity restrictions and social distancing, start at $36 for a two-person table or $72 for a four-person table.<\/p>\n

Other shows this month at the Helium Comedy Club are Jeff Dye from May 13-15, Lindsay Boling on May 16, Todd Glass from May 20-22, Rich Vos on May 26 and Darren Brand from May 27-30.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Dan May<\/p><\/div>\n

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, some people virtually became hermits. Singer\/songwriter Dan May literally became a hermit.<\/p>\n

\u201cI stopped going out for any reason,\u201d said May, during a phone interview Monday afternoon from his home in Drexel Hill. \u201c<\/p>\n

\u201cI was really sequestered. I had everything delivered.<\/p>\n

\u201dThe only times I went out were for a Soundbooth Session at the Sellersville Theater and two Livestream performances from Morningstar Studio.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, I\u2019ve gotten both vaccine shots. In another week, I\u2019ll be able to go out and about.\u201d<\/p>\n

Actually, May will be going out a little sooner \u2013 to Bucks County to headline a show on May 7 at the Sellersville Theater (24 West Temple Avenue, Sellersville, 215-257-5808,\u00a0www.st94.com<\/a>).<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Soundbooth Session was only with my piano player,\u201d said May. \u201cThe two at Morningstar were just solo shows. This weekend\u2019s show will be the first show with a live audience in the same room for more than a year.\u201d<\/p>\n

May took a circuitous route to his current place as a singer\/songwriter.<\/p>\n

He has worked as a gravedigger, television cameraman, short order cook, nuclear missile security guard, gas station attendant, ice cream truck driver, delivery man, amusement park worker and greenhouse laborer.
\nWhile studying music composition in college, he inadvertently stumbled upon an international opera career that forced him to leave a promising future as a songwriter behind.<\/p>\n

\u201cI grew up in Sandusky, Ohio,\u201d said May. \u201cI went to Bowling Green University and studied journalism. Then, I was writing for daily newspaper.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy wife wanted to go to Ohio State University, so we moved to Columbus. I went to Ohio State as a composition major. Somebody said I should sing opera, so I decided to try it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI studied opera at the Academy of Vocals Arts for four years. That\u2019s what brought us to this area, and we\u2019ve been here ever since. I was a bass\/baritone and sang professionally for 12 years.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then, his path took another unexpected turn.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had surgery on my vocal cords,\u201d said May. \u201cThey had become paralyzed. In the surgery, they injected fat into my vocal cords. I can sing with a full range, but my voice can\u2019t meet the demands of singing opera \u2013 especially the volume needed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI switched to being a singer\/songwriter in 2005 and I\u2019ve released six records since then. I also did two CDs with Elise Dadourian.\u201d<\/p>\n

May\u2019s sextet of LPs includes \u201cOnce Was Red,\u201d \u201cFate Said Nevermind,\u201d \u201cThe Long Road Home,\u201d \u201cHeartland,\u201d \u201cDying Breed\u201d and \u201cBeacon.\u201d The albums with Dadourian are \u201cGold Brick Road\u201d and \u201cSimple Truth.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen the pandemic hit, I was into song six on my new record,\u201d said May. \u201cWe put it on hold for six months. The songs are written but not recorded. I\u2019ve been recording at Morningstar and hope to have the new record out by the end of the year.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve used the time to do more writing. I write on a daily basis. Then, I go over 100 ideas and come up with 15 songs for an album. After that, I try to come up with a cohesive theme.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven though these days, people just buy songs not albums in the internet, I still think in album mode \u2013 keep things in order.\u201d<\/p>\n

On March 14, May posted this message on his Facebook page:<\/p>\n

\u201cFOUR HUNDRED EIGHTEEN – That’s how many days it’s been since I’ve performed in front of a live, in-person audience. That’s a long time. Longest stretch ever for me. But the good news is, that’s about to come to an end.<\/p>\n

Halleluja.<\/p>\n

\u201cMay 7th, I’m scheduled for my first show with a living, breathing audience in the same room with me. And it’ll take place at what is probably my favorite place to perform, the Sellersville Theater. By May 7th, that streak will have climbed to 475 days. But come join me and we’ll put that number to rest. End the streak. Together.<\/p>\n

\u201cI’ve greatly enjoyed my virtual concerts over the past year. The audience came out in record numbers and the response overwhelmed me. And the good news is, you folks outside the range of Sellersville and from across the country can join us too. Streaming tickets will also be available. And that’s pretty cool. The best of both worlds.\u201d<\/p>\n

May said, \u201cAt first, I was skeptical about Livestream. But, it\u2019s been a good thing for me. I\u2019ve established a 16-year fan base across the country, and this gives them a chance to see a live show. It\u2019s expanded the opportunities.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople can buy a Livestream ticket and see it live wherever they are. When I\u2019m doing a Livestream show, I can feel a connection to the audience. I feel an energy.<\/p>\n

Sellersville is doing it the right way \u2013 every other row, plexiglass. They\u2019re taking all the necessary precautions to protect the audience and create a safe environment in which to enjoy live music. Sellersville is always my favorite place to play.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for Dan May — https:\/\/youtu.be\/nkeTZzjzEGM<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The show at the Sellersville Theater on May 7, which will also be available via Livestream, will start at 8 p.m. Tickets are $25 for in person and $20 for Livestream.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Joe Louis\u00a0Walker<\/p><\/div>\n

Joe Louis\u00a0Walker\u00a0turned 71 on Christmas Day 2020 and is showing no signs of slowing down \u2013 other than having to wait for pandemic restrictions to ease up.<\/p>\n

On May 8, Walker will headline a show at the Sellersville Theater (24 West Temple Avenue, Sellersville, 215-257-5808,\u00a0www.st94.com<\/a>).<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been working on a studio album,\u201d said Walker, during a phone interview Monday afternoon from his home in New York\u2019s Hudson Valley.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe recorded the album at the NRS Studio in Catskill, New York. We worked with Scott Petito, who is a great engineer. We spent a lot of time in the studio. There were a lot of good musicians, and we had a lot of fun.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy band is on this record. One cut is with the B.B. King Blues Band. We had Doyle Bramhall and Waddy Wachtel. I also had several outstanding young musicians play on it.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe new album has blues music in a lot of different styles \u2013 including acoustic blues. I recognize my influences. It is a Joe Louis Walker record. I like all kinds of music, but my mother tongue is the blues.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust because I love all kinds of music, it doesn\u2019t mean I listen to it all the time. In the past, bands had to tour and play live a lot as an opening act. All the big acts now were opening acts at some point. That\u2019s how you learned how you do what you have to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Walker, who grew up in San Francisco, began studying guitar when he was eight. By the time he was 16, he was performing publicly and starting to build a reputation as a top-flight blues artist.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was born in San Francisco,\u201d said Walker. \u201cI went to junior high a block away from the Fillmore — back when it was like the Apollo. I was here before the hippies came and I\u2019m still here after they left.\u201d<\/p>\n

His parents were both from the South and they brought their love of blues with them when they headed west. Joe\u2019s dad played blues piano, and his mom played B.B. King records.\u00a0Walker\u00a0was coming into his own as a guitarist at the same time San Francisco\u2019s music scene was developing into a melting pot of blues, jazz and psychedelic rock.<\/p>\n

As a 16-year-old,\u00a0Walker\u00a0was the house guitarist at San Francisco\u2019s famed musical playground, The Matrix, where he played with or opened shows for everyone from Lightnin\u2019 Hopkins to Jimi Hendrix to Thelonious Monk. He was also a regular at The Fillmore West.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy first exposure to the blues was from my parents,\u201d said\u00a0Walker. \u201cThey brought the music with them from down South when they moved from Mississippi to San Francisco.<\/p>\n

\u201cI first started playing guitar when I was really young. I started performing at clubs in the Bay Area in the early 1960s and joined the musicians\u2019 union in 1966. I went to school a half-block from the Fillmore. And I played the Fillmore long before Bill Graham got there.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the late 1960s, San Francisco became a haven for hippies and, for a while, was the music capital of the world.<\/p>\n

\u201cI played with a lot of those guys \u2013 Jerry Miller from Moby Grape, Jorma Kaukonen from Jefferson Airplane, Bobby Weir from the Grateful Dead, John Cippollina from Quicksilver Messenger Service,\u201d said\u00a0Walker.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was roommate with Mike Bloomfield for a while. Everybody knew each other back in those days. Mike was one the best guitarists ever. There was no-one who could play like him.<\/p>\n

More than 50 years later, many of the musicians from the \u201cSummer of Love\u201d era are either dead or retired but\u00a0Walker\u00a0is still going strong.<\/p>\n

Over the last half-century,\u00a0Walker\u00a0not only has found great success playing his music in America, but he has also become an international ambassador of the blues and has played in venues all over Europe, South America and Asia.<\/p>\n

Walker\u00a0definitely understands \u2014 and represents \u2014 the real essence of the music genre known as the blues.<\/p>\n

\u201cBlues is like the comfort of an old friend,\u201d said\u00a0Walker. \u201cIt\u2019s a rite of passage. If you find yourself in a room with a lot of guitar players of all styles, when they want to play something together, it will be a blues song first and then a Chuck Berry rock-and-roll song second.\u201d<\/p>\n

Walker is one of the greatest bluesmen of his generation. He is a four-time Blues Music Award winner and 2013 Blues Hall of Fame inductee who has appeared on multiple Grammy-winning albums. He is known worldwide as one of the genre\u2019s top musical trailblazers\u2014a mesmerizing guitarist and soul-testifying vocalist.<\/p>\n

Walker\u00a0won the 2016 Blues Foundation Contemporary Blues Male Artist of the Year award at the Blues Foundation Awards ceremony in Memphis.\u00a0\u00a0The Blues Music Awards are universally recognized as the highest accolade afforded blues music performers. His album, \u201cEverybody Wants A Piece,\u201d was Grammy nominated Contemporary Blues Album of the Year in 2017.<\/p>\n

\u201cI play blues music in a lot of different styles \u2013 including acoustic blues,\u201d said\u00a0Walker. \u201cWhen I go on tour, I want to give people what they want.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I\u2019m deciding what songs to play in a show, I see what people think. I ask my fans what they want to hear. Some of the choices are also based on what the band members like.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m always writing songs. I\u2019m doing a little writing right now. I finished the record and have been fine-tuning it and mixing it. I\u2019ve also played on other people\u2019s records.<\/p>\n

\u201cOutside of that \u2013 like everybody else \u2013 I\u2019m sitting in limbo. Now, it\u2019s starting to pick up with shows \u2013 including the show Saturday in Sellersville. I love it up there. It\u2019s got good vibes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for Joe Louis\u00a0Walker\u00a0\u2013 https:\/\/youtu.be\/oVCutwd1XxE<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The show at the Sellersville Theater on May 8, which will also be available via Livestream, will start at 8 p.m. Tickets are $25 for in person and $12.50 for Livestream.<\/p>\n

Other upcoming shows at the Sellersville Theater are \u201cKICK – The INXS Experience\u201d on May 6 and Rachel Andie on May 11.<\/p>\n

Shows at Punch\u00a0Line\u00a0Philly\u00a0(33 East Laurel Street, Philadelphia,\u00a0www.punchlinephilly.com<\/a>) this week are Plastic Cup Boyz from May 6-9 and Brandon Leake on May 12.<\/p>\n

Acts scheduled for Jamey\u2019s House of Music (32 South Lansdowne Avenue, Lansdowne, jameyshouseofmusic.com<\/a>) this month are Tom Craig Band on May 7, Roger Girke on May 8, James Dalton on May 14, Lisa Chavous and the Philadelphia Blues Messengers on May 15, Bobby Messano on May 21 and Jefferson Berry on May 22.<\/p>\n

Bridgeport Rib House (1049 Ford Street, Bridgeport, www.ribhouse.net<\/a>) will be hosting performances by\u00a0Bill Hake and John McNutt on May 7 and Former Strangers on May 8. Matt Spitko has performances slated for May 8 and 9 followed by Brian Quinn & Danny Beissel on May 12.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>While there are increasingly more options to see and hear live music around the area, there is still only one option to enjoy a live theatrical show and that\u2019s at the Candlelight Theatre (2208 Millers Road, Arden, Delaware,\u00a0www.candlelighttheatredelaware.org<\/a>). The Candlelight\u2019s production of \u201cClever Little Lies\u201d will be presented every Friday, Saturday and Sunday through May 23 with an added matinee on May 19.<\/p>\n

An expertly crafted situation comedy about marriage, infidelity, and the deceptions necessary to cover one\u2019s tracks\u2026until one by one they begin to unravel. Written by Joe DiPietro (winner of two Tony Awards for\u00a0\u201cMemphis\u201d), \u201cClever Little Lies\u201d\u00a0is a hilarious expos\u00e9 of the relationship between husbands and wives, parents and children and unintended consequences.<\/p>\n

The play is a four-character show featuring Tom Hornung as Bill, Sue Hornung\u00a0(his wife in real life) as Alice, Hallie Hargus as Jane and Max Redman\u00a0as Billy.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the most attractive things about this play is that there are no good guys and no bad guys,\u201d said Hargus, a native of Lexington, Kentucky. \u201cEveryone is a fully human person. You see their good sides and you see their flaws. It\u2019s a comedy but it can be heavy at the flip of a switch. It deals with some heavy topics \u2013 love, fidelity, relationships.\u201d<\/p>\n

The show starts with the revelation that Billy is having with a hot, sexy affair with a 23-year-old personal trainer at his gym \u2013 a beautiful upbeat girl named Jasmine. It then gets more complicated and involves his dad and his mom as well as his wife.<\/p>\n

Moving forward during the pandemic has forced the Candlelight to make many changes.<\/p>\n

Masks covering the nose and mouth must be worn at all times except when you are eating or drinking, and everyone\u2019s temperature will be taken with a contactless thermometer when they enter the building.<\/p>\n

There are fewer tables than pre-pandemic and more widely spaced tables. Servers and staff will all wear a mask and gloves.<\/p>\n

If you want to see a funny play presented well by a professional cast in an ultra-safe environment, consider a trip to the comfortable theater in Arden.<\/p>\n

\u201cClever Little Lies\u201d will run now through May 23. Tickets are $65.50 for adults and $33 for children (ages 4-12). All seats are reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times Standup comedians follow different paths before arriving at their careers in comedy. One popular current comic grew up as one of the few black teens in a poor white neighborhood in Arizona. One spent time as a guitarist in a punk rock band prior to becoming a professional […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":48226,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8457],"tags":[13808,7426,6936,13807],"class_list":["post-48230","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-d-arts-entertainment","tag-dan-may","tag-featured","tag-joe-louis-walker","tag-shapel-lacey"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48230","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=48230"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48230\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":48231,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48230\/revisions\/48231"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/48226"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=48230"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=48230"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=48230"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}