Have you ever attended a stand-up comedy show in a bowling alley? What about inside of a greenhouse? How about a tattoo parlor?
When Kyle Kazanjian-Amory started Don’t Tell Comedy back in 2017, one has to wonder if he could have imagined all of the places he and his team would end up putting on shows.
“We’ve done shows at the top of the Sears (Willis) Tower in Chicago. We’ve done shows at a docked boat in Boston. We’ve done shows on trolleys. We’ve done shows on the beach. We’ve done shows in a forest treehouse. We love finding cool places like that,” explained Brett Kushner, the COO of Don’t Tell Comedy.
It’s time to pick your Milwaukee favorites for the year!
In Milwaukee, they’ve hosted shows at the Athletic Club in Downtown, Indeed Brewing Company in Walker’s Point, and a co-working space in Riverwest since the city’s first show in 2019.
Where will Don’t Tell Comedy be putting on shows in Milwaukee next? No one has a clue. Ticketholders don’t know the location of the show until the day of the show. They also don’t know who will be performing until the moment the performers step on stage.
In Milwaukee, you’ll often see up-and-coming local comedians. In the past, DTC has brought Ben Hofman, Chastity Washington, Ton Johnson and other locals to the stage.
You may also see comedians who are touring through Wisconsin. In the past, DTC shows in other cities have featured prominent acts like Ralph Barbosa, Susan Rice, Ian Edwards, Jenny Zigrino, Greer Barnes, Ian Fidance and Gianmarco Soresi. You really never know who will show up.
“With Don’t Tell getting bigger, and seen by more people, if bigger name comedians are doing a big theater and want to pop in and do a quick set of new jokes, they will,” said Judd Reminger, who produces DTC shows in Milwaukee. “We’ve had people who are touring around from Los Angeles or New York or anywhere pop in.”
Today, DTC has grown from a backyard promotion to an international organization. Their YouTube channel now has close to 2 million subscribers and has helped many comedians’ careers. They’re also putting on 100 shows a week in 200 plus cities across the world.
Because DTC casts a wide net, it includes a wide variety of comedy styles. You might get the self-deprecation of a local comedian joking about learning to do backflips to impress girls, as happened at a show in a gym in Madison a few weeks ago, or you might get Ralph Barbosa’s satirical political jokes about Californians gentrifying marijuana.
DTC not only bridges comedy lovers to local comedians, but to local businesses as well.
“Giving (venues) a chance to invite the local community into their space oftentimes is a boon to them. To let people go, ‘Oh, this is a really nice gym. Oh, I didn’t know it was so close to our house. It’s so nice. I want to join,’” Kushner said.
On the horizon, DTC has shows planned for March 7 in Bay View, March 8 Downtown, March 22 in Walker’s Point, and April 12 in Westown.
In the spirit of DIY, DTC’s shows are BYOB. Tickets are $25 each. For more info, you can follow Don’t Tell Comedy Milwaukee’s Instagram and website.
