Photo Credit: http://standupforcharity.com/pastshows.html#pics1

On Wednesday, October 26, some of the biggest names in comedy gathered at the Kaufman Center’s Merkin Concert Hall to raise money for The Joshua Morales Fund for Children with Transverse Myelitis.

Stand Up For Charity, a live celebrity stand up comedy show, attracts household names in comedy, politics, television, film and music to donate their time to raise money for selected charities around the country. Last Wednesday, the line-up was especially incredible; Jim Gaffigan
Todd Barry, Judah Friedlander, Jim Norton, Dave Attell and a special appearance by Macaulay Culkin .

The night started with a set by the host, of MTV’s soon to be premiering Guy Code, Andrew Schulz. His physical and very funny routine included jokes about what woman find fun; i.e taking jumping pictures and pictures of their feet in a circle (on the moon, that’s a space dolphin). Following the host was Todd Barry, who started off somewhat slow but picked up with some self-deprecating humor . Jim Norton followed with jokes about being a pervert and being unable to make small talk, erupting the room into laughter. Following Norton was Jim Gaffigan whose ode to Mcdonalds comedy routine had one pregnant audience member laughing so hard she almost went into labor.

After Gaffigan, a brief raffle was held by none other than the party monster himself, Macaulay Culkin. This was the highlight of the night for me. If you’ve seen my Macaulay Culkin nail post (amongst other Mac dedicated ones),  you already know.  Seriously, Macaulaywas the cutest thing on stage, first calling out Betty White’s name as the winner before proceeding with the actual names. Unfortunately, I did not win, but being 20 feet away from Mac was ( get ready for super, creepy, weirdness people) the real prize. Le Sigh.

Moving on from my creepy Mac obsession, the next comedian to take the stage was Judah Friedlander. To be honest, his rehearsed jokes fell flat however what Friedlander excels in is improv. Once he started interacting with the audience, the entire room was in hysterics.

The last comedian of the night was Dave Attell. You know how you know a comedian is extremely funny? When every other comedian is standing in the back of the room watching his set and laughing. Entering the stage super scruffy and kind of resembling a homeless hippie New Yorker, Attell took no prisoners as he made fun of everything and everyone. Witty, cynical and with a no holds barred attitude, he was definitely the highlight of the night.

For more information about the charity, how to donate, or to find out when the next Stand Up for Charity event is being held, click here.

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Colorful and entertaining could describe what I felt would be the highlight of the project, the collaboration by David Bowie, Mick Rock and Barney Clay would, in my opinion be the best part of the day in DUMBO for me.

Mick Rock is a legendary rock photographer and filmmaker who shot David Bowie, Iggy Pop and Queen to name a few.  His work is phenomenal and I genuinely appreciate his work and his career. Barney Clay is a director who makes films, commercials and music videos. David Bowie is beyond any words that can accurately describe his genius presence and the fact that many years ago he was way ahead of his time.

With that said, I was very excited to see what is called, Life On Mars Revisited.   After waiting in a short line with a few others to view the exhibit, we enter a four-walled cube of a room and sit on the floor. In the center is a laptop that presents the 360 degree projection on the walls.

The first moment of seeing Bowie in a sky blue suit and tie, red hair and turquoise eye shadow on a plain white backdrop is pure heaven.  For the first couple of minutes one could enjoy just watching his slender frame singing the lyrics, asking if there is life on Mars…completely mesmerized by the Bowie persona as an artist.

Suddenly, the next second in what appears to be a skipping video technical problem is not a technical error, but the projection shifts into another vision, another experience.

To techno deconstructive beats, well beyond the sweet sounds of Bowie into a mess of digital noise, we see the artist through what appears to be slithers of shattered glass into fragments of broken frames or mirrors or something and finally into this totally destroyed interpretation that is Life on Mars Revisited.

I am not one to hate another’s form of expression, because what it all comes down to is opinion, but this exhibit destroyed for me what could have been me mesmerized by David Bowie on the big screen.

The other participants of this experience left in silence so I could not get a sense of what the others were feeling or thinking. I could not learn from others something about what we just saw and heard, an explanation of what took place of sorts. The explanation of the exhibition said that Life on Mars Revisited is a conversion from analogue to digital; mangled and excreted through the cipher of fame, adulation, self-destruction, culminating in rebirth”.

Maybe I can sum up this section by describing what was seen as stencil graffiti on the side of a brick building not far from the exhibit.  It said, “The Future Sucked”. Enough said and oddly relevant.

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