Travel hilarity

10 ‘Out on Stage’ comedians tell their best on-the-road travel stories

On January 17, Dekkoo, the subscription-based entertainment service, launches its new, six-episode Out on Stage: The Series, featuring a line-up of 16 queer comics hosted by Zach Noe Towers.

Since stand-up comedians spend an insane amount of time traveling from gig to gig, we couldn’t think of anyone better to fill us in on the ups and downs of a life spent on the road:

Q: What’s the funniest travel experience you’ve had while performing?

https://www.instagram.com/p/BpwvSWwA9vP/
Kyle Shire
An LA-based comic, Kyle is is known for his loud, irreverent, rant-based comedy (imagine Paul Lynde and Lewis Black had an angry, hairy baby and made it watch anime for 28 years.)

One time I was in San Francisco doing some shows with some friends. Me and the other comics I traveled with were broke as hell and did not secure lodgings for the gig. I assumed that we were going to sleep in the car, but my buddy Gil said we could find a floor to sleep on if we just ‘asked around.’ (This was way before Airbnb was a thing). I had never been to San Francisco before, it sounded farfetched to me, but Gil insisted that it was ‘that kind of city.’

Flash forward three hours, I am attempting to fall asleep on the floor of a filthy studio apartment, occupied by two militant communists, who are aggressively lecturing the other comics about supply-side economics over bong rips. And I’m basically a Democratic Socialist, so it wasn’t their rhetoric that got me, it was that I’ve never seen people be that stoned be that angry. Long story short, I’m grateful for Airbnb.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BrB13b7n5iF/
Jared Goldstein:
Jared is an actor and writer, known for It’s Kind of a Funny Story and Counterpart.

I just got back from Utah. I was performing at Utah State where I met a Mormon named Sister Areola. She gave me directions to an outdoor mall, but more importantly, she gave me a new drag name.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BrF9A3SHMCJ/
Julian Michael
A self-described “token minority,” Julian was on his way to becoming a Baptist minister before he discovered how hilarious and gay he is.

It’s funny now, but it definitely wasn’t then…I was on my way to Reno and my bumper flew halfway off in a wind gust.  I was so far out in the middle of nowhere I couldn’t even tell roadside assistance where I was to get help. Eventually, I drove super slowly to a rest stop where I found some duct tape and ghetto-rigged my Kia back together. I still made the show (and I killed if I do say so myself).

A.B. Cassidy
As a comic, A.B. has opened for major headliners like Carlos Mencia, Tig Notaro, and Bill Burr. They have also appeared on season 2 of This is Us, and in Kesha’s music video, “Hymn.”

One time I headlined a hotel in Vegas that happened to be hosting a rodeo that weekend. I had breakfast next to a cowboy, who thought I was a boy, that tried for an hour to convince me to become a ranch hand. It almost worked.

Q: In what city were you most surprised to find a receptive audience?

https://www.instagram.com/p/BpyBfzzHhYt/
Anthony Desamito:
Anthony is a stand-up comedian and taco enthusiast from Arizona who has appeared on FOX’s Laughs and “The Doug Stanhope Podcast.”

Asheville, North Carolina. Really sweet audience and a hearty mix of laughing at themselves and good balance of laughing at liberal ideals and at conservative norms.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BsCBGdlnBoJ/
Janine Brito:
Janine Brito is a stand-up comic/writer/performer currently working on the Netflix series One Day at a Time.

A biker bar in Tampa loved me. I still consider Harley-heads and leather-skinned tan women named Jeanette my target audience.

Q: Where is the most unusual place you’ve ever done standup?

https://www.instagram.com/p/BoMmTobH_By/
Irene Tu:
Chicago-born, San Francisco-based stand-up comedian, actor, and writer, Irene, was singled out by the San Francisco Chronicle as an “artist on the brink of fame.”

A birthday party in a lady’s living room for her and her two friends.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bbc5mGOlNeE/
Raneir Pollard:
Raneir is the Guinness World Record Holder for most burpees in a minute wearing stilletos!

A vintage clothing store. I bought overalls that I haggled for and performed in them shirtless with one strap undone. Still considering making that my staple outfit.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bm_3VbTn6uA/
Jonathan Cerda-Rowell:
Based in L.A., Jonathan has contributed as a writer for Billy on the Street on truTV and Roast Battle on Comedy Central.

A laundromat on Santa Monica and Vine [in Los Angeles]. They had an open mic there for years. A bunch of comedians trying out material at 2pm while little abuelitas tried to do their laundry.

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