{"id":1586,"date":"2020-09-03T17:37:24","date_gmt":"2020-09-04T00:37:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.scot.fun\/damentals\/?p=1586"},"modified":"2020-09-03T17:41:47","modified_gmt":"2020-09-04T00:41:47","slug":"whats-the-weird-for","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.scot.fun\/damentals\/whats-the-weird-for\/","title":{"rendered":"What’s The Weird For?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In Scot Nery’s Boobietrap<\/a>, we have weird acts. We have a category for them called “weird.” They’re really great for mixing it up and destabilizing the show. I didn’t always like weird. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In San Francisco, I had been exposed to Dadaism, art films, nonsensical Burning Man art and all kinds of funky things that were not entertaining to me. They were surprising and unusual, but they didn’t bring me in as powerfully as Jurassic Park or Chris Rock. I don’t just mean odd acts like “pancake juggling,” I mean mostly performances that don’t have escalation or an arc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most of the time these kind of acts seem like they’re for audiences who really want to claim that they “get it.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The most masterful exhibitor of weird, I think is Reggie Watts. The first time I saw him was in a bar in Echo Park, Los Angeles. I loved it immediately. It was a very unique experience for me at that time. I love watching great entertainers to see the things they create and to see what it does to the audience. My personal taste comes very little into the picture. I’m mostly interested in seeing an audience be dragged into the riptide of an act. The surprising thing about Reggie’s performance was that I didn’t care about what he was doing on stage. He had incredible skills, but it was so weird I was turned off to it. I wouldn’t have watched him do it if I was the only one in the room. It only took a few moments to notice that I wasn’t alone in the room at all. The audience was roaring ( together ) at all the right times. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reggie has a subconscious, emotional rhythm that doesn’t need to connect with words, logic, or physicality. It’s just like a standup comedian’s rhythm that can get you in the flow, but without the extra baggage. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Watts converted me to appreciating weird. I saw him in that show and all other shows generate the same or more power as any amazing linear act. Since meeting him that night, I’ve gotten the chance to understand weird acts more. One thing about the experience of a weird act – especially in a safe framework – is they show how much brain breaking people can handle. It’s fun to watch with your friends and see if they get pissed off or delighted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At Boobietrap, one of my favorite moments was this 65 year old dude who had never seen the show before came up to me. It was an insanely great night filled with awesome acts. He said “A lot of good stuff, but that feller who talked about the taco truck… he was incredible!” That feller was Reggie. I loved it. I loved that this man who was probably carrying a couple pistols in his waistband had been dragged across the surreal rainbow bridge that Watts created and was grateful for it. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In Scot Nery’s Boobietrap, we have weird acts. We have a category for them called “weird.” They’re really great for mixing it up and destabilizing the show. I didn’t always like weird. In San Francisco, I had been exposed to Dadaism, art films, nonsensical Burning Man art and all kinds of funky things that were […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":1588,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_10158666434799935_26707174888":"","twitter_aToyMjM4MTQzMDs=_22381430":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1586","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.scot.fun\/damentals\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/weird.jpg?fit=2000%2C1373&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pc33gc-pA","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2469,"url":"https:\/\/www.scot.fun\/damentals\/when-we-go-more-global\/","url_meta":{"origin":1586,"position":0},"title":"When We Go More Global","author":"scot","date":"April 2, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"People started doing live interactive streaming entertainment. 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The credits roll. 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