The Comedy Club Show
Harlan, Dan
L&L Publishing
Dan then demonstrates what happens when you chew two popular candies at the same time in "Professor Mouthcoil" as he produces a voluminous amount of colored paper from his mouth. Turning to mindreading, his gag prediction of a freely-named grocery item is turned on its head when he actually produces the real item from his case. To finish this part of the show, he performs an impossible and startling vanish of the grocery item just when the audience is convinced that the entire thing is a put-on. In "Short and Long," Dan adds a very ribald presentation to a classic of magic, the Professor's Nightmare.
Then, in "Burnt to the Core," the corner is torn from a borrowed twenty dollar bill and is completely destroyed during some very funny by-play with the audience assistant. It's then found unharmed in the middle of a knotted handkerchief (and of course, the corner fits.) The bill is vanished once again (will the spectator never learn?) but is found this time in the middle of a small piece of rope that the audience member had in his pocket since taking the stage (and yes, once again, the torn corner fits!)
To finish the show, Dan performs "Cheez Wiz," a comedic tour-de-force that must be seen to be believed. In a nutshell, Harlan proposes to perform the classic Card Between Panes of Glass trick but unfortunately, he doesn't have any panes of glass - or cards, for that matter. He then proceeds to perform the trick using standard grocery items - slices of bread instead of panes of glass and a package of cheese slices instead of cards. Much hilarity ensues as a "card" is selected, "signed" by a spectator - with a condiment, of course - and then vanished using...what else?...a banana. It's a great finish to a show that's equal parts funny and amazing.
Enjoy the show, then prepare to learn the secrets of a master as every nuance is revealed. Soon, you too will Pack Small, and Play Big!
Running Time Approximately: 1hr 34min
Reviews
(Top ▲)
Hey A$$ H***!!! . . . Did I get your attention?
How 'bout this one: Have you ever seen a moron wrapped in plastic? No? Look at your driver's license!
Dan Harlan actually said that to his audience member who was trying to help him out but made a little mistake. Why do magicians think that insulting our audience is "comedy magic!?"
If, as the saying goes, every rose has its thorn (thank you Poison), then the thorn on the rose of magic is this so called comedy magic crap. Sure comedy magic can be done and done well. But insulting your audience is just simply not funny. Yet this DVD is here to teach us how to do a comedy show that packs flat and plays big . . . but I've gotten ahead of myself.
Same intro for all reviews of Dan Harlan's Pack Small, Play Big DVDs:
Dan Harlan's one of those guys that I've had mixed feelings about for many years. I think he's clever, has many good ideas, and is a very innovative creator and thinker. I also think that his performances are extremely non-smooth and very choppy. At the same time, that's kind of "his thing." Further, his performances are full of (and I mean full of) puns and cheesey jokes/gags/etc. Yet on the other hand, most of his "cheese" is original - at the very least not hackneyed - "cheese."
All in all I'm a fan, but you may not be. That's your call. So here's the plan: we'll look at each one of the DVDs in this series individually. You'll find this intro at the beginning of each review of each individual DVD. It's, I think, a fantasy of a great many of us to have an act that fits entirely in small to medium sized case, yet still can dominate a room and play big. Thus, my main focus - though not my only focus - will be on how well put together the show is and whether or not it really does "Pack Small" and "Play Big."
The Comedy Club Show
Was it funny? Can you learn "funny" from this DVD? Moron "jokes" aside, there is a fair amount of funny moments. However, this DVD is (more than any of the others in this series) the epitome of the cheesy choppy Dan Harlan mentioned above. He tries waaaaaaaaay to hard to be funny in many places. In others, he genuinely is funny. As y'all know, I don't usually let the performance impact the overall score of the review. However, in a case where the DVD is supposed to be about comedy, the presentation has to be considered. So there will be a hit for insults and general non-funniness.
On the other hand, however, there are some real stand out pieces that play very well . . . his Visine vanishing silk routine is beautifully scripted, clever, funny and has perfect choreography for handling a very standard effect. There are a few others that stick out as well, but I'll only mention one more: vanishing ketchup bottle! BAM! One of the better ways to present this. It's starts as a long (maybe too long) series of standard gags, but the difference is that he's using a real ketchup bottle. Then he rings in the "Neilsen" and BAM! (I just like that word) he got audible gasps from the audience when it vanished.
As mentioned, there were other funny routines, but even the other funny ones had way too many penis innuendos. However, in fairness, the somewhat "blue" material seemed to play quite well with the audience, so if you like that stuff - it really wasn't too in-your-face - you'll probably appreciate this. For the most part, his "blue" material is very much in the same style as Doc Eason's delivery of Stan, Kate and Edith. The "blue" is there, but he doesn't rub your nose in it . . . much.
Overall, I think there is a lot of solid material on this DVD, and it does pack pretty flat and can play pretty big. There is some great material that I think would be much funnier in the hands of a funnier performer. Dan Harlan is humorous and has funny moments (a lot of them), but sometimes he tries too hard to be funny on this DVD. On the bright side, it's clear that Harlan is an experienced performer and you learn a fair bit about show organization and structure from all of the DVDs in this set.
You'll learn a lot of valuable information, tips, tricks, effects, methods, etc., from a guy who's definitely spent a lot of time in the trenches. I'll recommend this DVD if you'll heed my warning about comedy vs. insulting.
Final Verdict:
3.5 Stars with a Stone Status of gem - with a little 'g'.
(Top ▲)
This DVD is the perfect marriage of that vibe I have. Dan’s performance ‘character’ during the show is spastic, un-human, and insults audience members. Some of the effects are almost un-deceptive, and there are several much better versions in the literature. That said, I really like some of the ideas on here.
He shows you how to turn the UPC gag into a real effect with a pay off that uses a running gag and your promo material in a very interesting way. World’s Saddest Trick is a very nice little piece that is routined nicely.
Note: On every volume of this series, he talks about the “Triple Trilogy” approach to structuring a show, and in my opinion, this mini lecture is worth the price of the individual disc you purchase.
As long as you don’t take any performance tips from this DVD, you will definitely get a few ideas for your shows.
Three Stars