late night comedy Tag

March 8, 2023 In Blog

PEP & GREG SAVE AMERICA

PEP & GREG SAVE AMERICA at Boom Chicago Theater
8 March 2023

Pep Rosenfeld (SNL) & Greg Shapiro (‘Netherlands Second’ video) are back at Boom Chicago – to save America! And also to make fun of Marjorie Taylor Greene. This political comedy show dares to make the argument: it’s safe to be proud of America again! In fact, that’s our only option – if we want to beat Trump in 2024. (yes, it’ll be Trump.)

The 2024 election is already underway.
-Will Trump be replaced by someone worse?
-Will Joe Biden survive until 2024?
– AND (Will FOX News survive until 2024?)
Inspired by Joe Biden’s Summit for Democracy series, Pep & Greg Save America proposes 5 simple changes that could make a HUGE difference – and they make it funny. Pep & Greg have done 10 political comedy shows so far, with their patented mix of standup comedy and improvisation. As in their previous hit show Trump Up the Volume.

And this time we brought a friend! Pep & Greg Save America features songs and improvisation by the critically-acclaimed Stacey Smith and Sacha Hoedemaker.

Pep Rosenfeld: in addition to his work at Boom Chicago, Pep was also nominated for an Emmy for his work at Saturday Night Live.
Greg Shapiro: Greg is known as the host of Boom Chicago’s Comedy Central News, as well as the voice of Donald Trump in Arjen Lubach’s viral video ‘The Netherlands Second.’

**REVIEW: PEP & GREG SAVE AMERICA AT BOOM CHICAGO**

as seen in ArtsTalkMagazine.nl
“JOKES WERE WELL-SCULPTED AND WIDE-RANGING.”
“ENGAGING WITH THE AUDIENCE, THEY WERE QUICK, PROVOCATIVE AND PUGNACIOUS.”

PRAISE for Pep & Greg’s previous Boom Chicago shows:
‘Sharp satire and world class improvisation’ – De Volkskrant.

‘Five stars! Greg and Pep have an incredible charisma and are very funny…. Sassy Stacey’s super singing is the icing on the cake.’ — D Robbinson, Trip Advisor
‘Superior. Hilarious satire’ – Theaterkrant.nl
|‘Greg is a scarily real fake Trump’ – Het Parool

TICKETS: CLICK HERE
https://boomchicago.nl/pep-greg-save-america/

More Greg reviews? Click here:
https://gregshapiro.nl/media/theater-reviews-for-greg-shapiros-latest-shows/

Fun for the whole family! (Last time, these folks brought 3 generations.)

February 14, 2023 In Blog

Greg Shapiro SHOWS / TV Appearances

Greg Shapiro Shows / TV Appearances

15 February, 2023

By popular demand! You now have a one-stop shop for all my Greg Shapiro Comedy Shows – and TV appearances.

SHOWS

Good news: I now have all my upcoming comedy dates on one page: standup / improv / solo shows.
(Some seasons I have a proper theater tour with a whole season full of bookings, known months in advance. …This is not one of those seasons.)

This season I’m picking up ad hoc gigs on a month-by-month basis, mostly in the Netherlands. Mostly standup comedy spots. Also comedy improv shows, mostly at Boom Chicago.
BUT – sometimes I pick up a show in Paris, just because I’m passing through.
FOR EXAMPLE:
22 Feb. PowerPoint Comedy Show Wed, Mar 22, 8:00 PM – 10:00 PM
La Pomme D’eve
1 Rue Laplace, Paris 75005
calendar.google.com/calendar/u/0/r/week

And yes, I’m in tryout phase for my new solo show: Dutch to the Rescue. Early previews are great so far!

Greg Shapiro New Solo: ’DUTCH TO THE RESCUE’
Who do you call when you need a sea wall? The Dutch.
Which country’s thriving with sea levels rising? The Dutch.
Who brings you luck when your container ship’s stuck? The Dutch.
When it comes to Climate Change, the Netherlands has a lot of answers to world’s challenges. But they don’t like to talk about it. Yes, Dutch people are producing the world’s first solar-powered car, creating lab-grown meat, cleaning up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch… but they don’t like to brag. The Netherlands is like a superhero obsessed with their secret identity.
Enter Greg Shapiro, who’s been living in the Netherlands long enough to be proud of the Dutch – and still American enough to not care how l out he is about it.

CLICK HERE FOR DATES (I’ll update them on a monthly basis):
https://gregshapiro.nl/greg-shapiro-upcoming-comedy-shows/

TV Appearances

“Didn’t I see you on TV?” The answer is: MAYBE, yes. Here is a one-stop shop for everyone wondering if you actually saw me on television – or if you were thinking of Screech from Saved by the Bell.

Here you have a bunch of clickable videos with Dutch American comedian me on – mostly Dutch – TV. Of course there’s the ‘Netherlands Second’ video (scroll down to bottom). But most of these clips are me appearing as myself. And – since I am The American Netherlander – these clips are partly in English, and partly in (bad) Dutch.
Find my TV Appearances page in the MENU under MEDIA – or click here:
https://gregshapiro.nl/media/theater-reviews-for-greg-shapiros-latest-shows/

Also – you can go to Greg’s YouTube channel and view the Playlist:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLccmkVw5sINqpr3yX4Ex1CeXm8FaIThKo

November 15, 2022 In Blog

Review: ‘Pep & Greg Save America’

Review: PEP & GREG SAVE AMERICA at Boom Chicago

as seen in ArtsTalkMagazine.nl
“JOKES WERE WELL-SCULPTED AND WIDE-RANGING.”
“ENGAGING WITH THE AUDIENCE, THEY WERE QUICK, PROVOCATIVE AND PUGNACIOUS.”

15 November, 2022

REVIEWED BY Jacob John Shale :
Political comedy is largely useless. That is to say that it has no impact upon the figures, events and institutions it criticises. There’s a very funny moment in one of the comedian Doug Stanhope’s specials (or maybe it’s from an interview, I can’t find the clip online) in which he describes his exasperation at having to encounter people debating issues he has already dealt with in his previous stand-up routines. I’m paraphrasing, but Stanhope’s joke goes something like: How is this argument still going on? Don’t they know I’ve already shouted at thousands of drunk people about this?

Pep and Greg Save America

(hosted by Pep Rosenfeld and Greg Shapiro) wants to be regarded as a work of uncompromising satire. The premise of the show, which premiered at Boom Chicago on the night of the midterm election, is that America is a wonderful place currently captured by a band of right-wing lunatics whose ideals bear no resemblance to those on which the country was founded. They argue that the Democrats should once again embrace patriotism; rescue it from Republican hands. Against this premise, we have the hosts’ recognition that entertainment is not activism. Their title is self-mocking in the same manner as the joke by Stanhope mentioned above. Rosenfeld and Shapiro understand that America will not be saved by the end of the night, and how ridiculous it is to assume that comedy should serve this function.

The show’s targets

were about as predictable as the darts that were flung at them. Still, they landed. When faced with the gargoyles of the American political scene, many contemporary comedians seem to feel that there is little need in putting together a punch line. And why would they? All you have to do is quote a particularly stupid remark and you have your applause. This approach was thankfully not too much present in last night’s show.

The two comedians’ jokes were well-sculpted and wide-ranging in their references – everything from Tucker Carlson (of whom Shapiro performed an impression) to She-Hulk (used to make an unexpected comparison) to Twin Peaks (it dismays me to report that this joke, which I will not spoil, was the one that elicited the least laughter). Ultimately, it was in their crowd-work that I thought Shapiro and Rosenfeld were at their funniest. Engaging with the audience, they were quick, provocative and pugnacious. It made me wish that the rest of the show had not been so carefully engineered.

Jacob John Shale 8th November 2022

Review Pep & Greg Save America

http://artstalkmagazine.nl/pep-greg-save-america-at-boom-chicago-amsterdam/

FOR MORE REVIEWS, click here
https://gregshapiro.nl/media/theater-reviews-for-greg-shapiros-latest-shows/

November 2, 2022 In Blog

Greg Shapiro November Dates

Greg Shapiro November Comedy Dates 2022

2 November, 2022

November starts with a BANG. For FOUR nights only, we perform ‘PEP & GREG SAVE AMERICA’ at Boom Chicago in Amsterdam. (starting 3 Nov.) Just in time for the US Midterm Elections 2022. Pep and I have been doing standup comedy shows together for 20 of America’s 240 years. So this time we’ve added music and improv from Stacey Smith & Sacha Hoedemaker. It’s a hoot. And – based on the results on Election Night – Pep & I might just save America by putting a pillow over its face and ending the pain.

https://boomchicago.nl/pep-greg-save-america/

Special events after the Thursday, Saturday & Tuesday shows. Have a look below.
(For previous Pep & Greg Shows, click here:)
https://gregshapiro.nl/portfolio_page/boom-chicago-2016-election-show-trump-up-the-volume/

Another show I’m excited about is the new English comedy series at Pepijn Comedy Club in The Hague. (10 Nov.) I’m booking the shows as well as hosting. And guess who’s coming to be our headliner? The Best Newcomer at the 2022 Edinburgh Comedy Awards! Amsterdam’s own Lara Ricote. She is smart & funny.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgySVdjX86E

And I’ll be headlining the first show in a new series in Westerpark at the Pacific Amsterdam in Westergasfabriek. It’s called Jesterpark.

I’ll be playing in Amsterdam, Leiden, Den Haag, Utrecht – and Paris!

Photo: Michaelia Kramer

Comedy Dates

3. A’dam. Boom Chicago. ‘Pep & Greg Save America’ 20.00
https://boomchicago.nl/pep-greg-save-america/

4. Leiden. Qbus. ‘Int’l Standup Comedy Night’ 20.30
https://secure.tix4all.nl/tickets/international-stand-up-comedy-hl-greg-shapiro-2349/ticket

5. A’dam. Boom Chicago. ‘Pep & Greg Save America’ 19.00
+ Shot of Improv 22.00
https://boomchicago.nl/pep-greg-save-america/

6. A’dam. Boom Chicago. ‘Pep & Greg Save America’ 19.00
https://boomchicago.nl/pep-greg-save-america/

8. A’dam. Boom Chicago. ‘Pep & Greg Save America’ 20.00
https://boomchicago.nl/pep-greg-save-america/

8 A’dam. Boom Chicago. Election Night Party 22.00
https://www.democratsabroad.org/tgriffin20/election_night_show_watch_party?utm_campaign=novemeber_2022_event&utm_medium=email&utm_source=democratsabroad

10. The Hague. Pepijn Comedy Club (MC) 20.30
https://www.diligentia-pepijn.nl/agenda/4432/Various_Stand_Up_Comedians/PePijn%27s_Comedy_Club_But_in_English

11. A’dam. Boom Chicago. Comedy Embassy standup. 20.30
https://www.comedyembassy.com/shows/boom-chicago/

12. Utrecht. Comedy Huis standup @Domplein 4. 20.30
https://comedyhuis.nl/shows/all-english-comedynight-3/

13. A’dam. Comedy Night Zuidas @WUSH. 19.00
https://secure.tix4all.nl/tickets/stand-up-comedy-showcase-featuring-greg-shapiro-2351/ticket

16. A’dam. ‘Jesterpark’ @Pacific Amsterdam. 20.15
https://www.facebook.com/events/1160319617887890/

19. Paris. NY Comedy Night. @Palais des Glaces. 22.00
https://www.palaisdesglaces.com/programme/235-the-new-york-comedy-night

20. Paris. Sunday Night Showcase @La Kibéle. 21.30
https://www.comedyinparis.com/blast-off-comedy/446148822137

More dates to be announced as they come… And I may be picking up a show in Chicago in December…

November 2, 2022 In Blog

Greg Gets Name-Checked on TV

Greg Shapiro Gets Name-Checked on TV
2 Nov, 2022

One of the more bizarre aspects of knowing famous people is when they name-check you on TV. The king of Dutch late-night comedy is Arjen Lubach, and he is also one of the smartest fellows on TV. Hence he can frequently be seen on the Dutch quiz show De Slimste Mens.

To introduce a new quiz category, Arjen made a short video, saying: “Na de inauguratie van Donald Trump maakte wij bij Zondag Met Lubach een filmpje dat aardig viral ging. The ‘Netherlands Second.’ Ik hou het niet exact bij, maar de teller staat op ongeveer de 41,980,818 views. De stem van Donald Trump werd trouwens fenomenaal gedaan bij Greg Shapiro van Boom Chicago. Boom Chicago. Boom. …Wat weet u van de eik?”

Translation:
“After the inauguration of Donald Trump, we made a video at Zondag Met Lubach that went quite viral. The ‘Netherlands Second’ video. I can’t keep track of it exactly, but the view count is approximately 41,980,818 views. The voice of Donald Trump was done phenomenally by Greg Shapiro from the Boom Chicago theater. ‘Boom Chicago.’ Boom (Tree). …What do you know about the oak?”
Thanks for the shout-out!

One Shout-out and One Insult

Also my name recently came up, when a friend of mine was watching a 2014 episode of Broad City. He sent me a screenshot of Zack Gallifianakis’ character saying, “Only me and Greg Shapiro could go blow ourselves.”

What -? Why ‘Greg Shapiro’ -? Surely this was a coincidence. Or… could it be my former girlfriend? One of the writers on Broad City was indeed a former Boom Chicago colleague – who was also a former girlfriend. I thought we had broken up amicably (in 1995). But who knows, maybe it sometimes takes 19 years for people to exact their revenge. I’ll never know.

A lot of my former colleagues are working in American show business. We all worked together doing improv comedy at Boom Chicago. And one of the fundamental rules of improvisation is “Make Your Partner Look Good.” So when I see former colleagues winning awards – like Seth Meyers and Jordan Peele and Jason Sudeikis – I feel like “I made them look good.” And looking at my career, I realize “I guess I did a better job than they did.”

Click here for more Greg Shapiro TV appearances:
https://gregshapiro.nl/media/tv-appearances/

Click here for more video collaborations with Shapiro & Arjen Lubach:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jhELeau4ukM&t=83s

October 1, 2022 In Blog

Greg Shapiro Comedy Dates October

GREG SHAPIRO COMEDY DATES OCTOBER

1 Oct., 2022

More Standup & Improv shows coming up! Yes, most dates are in and around Amsterdam. But I’ll be ending the month touring in Switzerland. (And Paris, you’re next.)

PEP & GREG SAVE AMERICA
It’s a pop-up US election show, scheduled for November 3, 5, 6 & 8 (election night). Pep Rosenfeld and I have been making comedy shows together since 1985. My pitch was for the title ‘Pep & Greg Save America’ and a poster of us putting a pillow over Uncle Sam’s face. But maybe Joe ‘Dark Brandon’ Biden is giving us something worth saving…? And it looks like we’ll have Boom Chicago’s new Artistic Director Stacey Smith adding some music to the show. In October, we’ll be doing a number of free tryouts at Boom Chicago – and a preview on 30 Oct.

DUTCH TO THE RESCUE
My new solo show is based on my video series ‘Climate News Comedy’ – anything to make climate news funny. It turns out there’s plenty of good news, much of it coming from the Dutch – almost.

– Lowlands Festival unveils the world’s largest solar car park! …Now all we need to do is plug it in.
– The world’s biggest wind turbine! …Will now be making hydrogen for Shell.
– Solar-powered drinking water from the sea! …Was canceled by activists for using plastic bottles.
Whether it’s Dutch innovators or Dutch World Cup teams, they love winning their way to the finals …and then tripping up. Truly, they’re more comfortable being ‘Netherlands Second.’

MORE IMPROV
Improv comedy is pure joy, and I haven’t had enough lately. I’ll be joining a couple improv shows in October, and more coming up.

GREG SHAPIRO COMEDY DATES OCTOBER, 2022

1 Oct. A’dam. Boom Chicago ‘Shot of Improv’ 22.00 https://boomchicago.nl/

5 Oct. A’dam. Boom Chicago Standup Tryout 21.30 https://boomchicago.nl/

6 Oct. A’dam. TheStudentHotel West. Standup show 20.30 (link to come)

8 Oct. A’dam. Boom Chicago ‘Shot of Improv’ 22.00 (tbd) https://boomchicago.nl/

12 Oct. A’dam. FEED Wibautstraat. Standup Show 20.45.
https://facebook.com/events/s/feed-comedy-night-ft-greg-shap/844523556918711/

13 Oct. A’dam. Boom Chicago ‘Standup Tryout 22.00 https://boomchicago.nl/

14 Oct. A’dam. Betty Asfalt. Trigger Warning Comedy 20.30
https://bettyasfaltcomplex.nl/voorstelling.php?id=1478

25 Oct. BERN. (TBD) DeLaHaye Comedy Standup show ___

26 Oct. BASEL. Basel Standup Comedy Night ___

27 Oct. ZURICH. Comedy Haus Standup ___

28 Oct. A’dam. Boom Chicago Standup Tryout 21.30 https://boomchicago.nl/

30 Oct. A’dam. Boom Chicago ‘Pep & Greg Save America’ preview 20.30 https://boomchicago.nl/

31 Oct. A’dam. De Prael Bar. Monday Night Live! 20.00
https://www.eventbrite.nl/e/monday-night-live-tickets-375239981887

See reviews for Pep & Greg’s previous political standup show LOCK HIM UP –
https://gregshapiro.nl/portfolio_page/boom-chicago-2020-election-show-lock-him-up/

September 27, 2022 In Blog

COMEDY CENTRAL NEWS, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

27 Sept., 2022

HBD, CCN! It was 15 years ago that Boom Chicago comedy theater launched Comedy Central News, with your host: Greg Shapiro. “Comedy Central News: Because Dutch News Is News Too.”

In 2007, Viacom’s Comedy Central launched its first channel in the Netherlands. The Dutch producers wanted to create a new TV show for the occasion – a mix of The Daily Show and a comedy sketch show. And they liked me when I was presenting the ‘Boom Chicago News’ for a TV pilot we’d made. So Boom Chicago got the call to create a show, and we came in with a concept that was basically “What if The Muppet Show had a Weekend Update?”

CCN COMEDY CENTRAL NEWS SEASON ONE, EP 23

CCN AND EMMY AWARD WINNER BRENDAN HUNT

It was quirky, it was daily, and it featured my Boom Chicago colleague Lauren Flans doing remote segments about Dutch culture. Lauren would go on to appear on MTV’s Wild ‘N Out and Epic Rap Battles of History.
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1508641/

Our executive producer – and 2008 head writer – was Pep Rosenfeld, who had actually written for ‘Weekend Update’ on Saturday Night Live and been nominated for an Emmy.
https://boomchicago.nl/pep-rosenfeld/

And the 2007 Head Writer was Brendan Hunt, who is now known as co-creator of the Emmy-winning series TED LASSO. (You might know him as TED LASSO’s ‘Coach Beard.’)
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0402360/

(Here is Brendan Hunt with some of his early beard work.)

A DUTCH NEWS SHOW IN ENGLISH

It remains amazing to me that we were able to make a TV show – for the Netherlands – in English. At that point, Dutch commercial television was experimenting with more and more English (Dutch publicly funded TV shows not so much). A few years before CCN, there was a brief moment when Boom Chicago was being pitched to create a Dutch version of Whose Line Is It Anyway – for a Dutch public broadcaster. But our Dutch language skills were niet zo goed. That pitch went on to become the smash hit De Lama’s, starring Ruben van der Meer – who started his career working in the Boom Chicago kitchen. The host of De Lama’s was Patrick Lodiers.

Side note: Patrick Lodiers went on to host a 2007 late night comedy news show called De Nieuwste Show – premiering the exact same month as our show, CCN. You know that story about the Burger King opening up right next to the McDonalds, and miraculously both businesses saw improved success? Yeah, that did not happen in our case. But interestingly, one of the commentators on De Nieuwste Show was a young Arjen Lubach. And we would go on to collaborate for some quality TV content – about 10 years later.

https://mashable.com/video/netherlands-trump-viral-video

CCN COMEDY CENTRAL NEWS PROMO SPOT

CCN COMEDY CENTRAL NEWS – IN GREG SHAPIRO ARCHIVE

https://gregshapiro.nl/portfolio_page/greg-shapiro-comedy-central-news/

MEDIA LINKS CCN COMEDY CENTRAL NEWS

https://www.volkskrant.nl/cultuur-media/comedygezelschap-boom-chicago-ook-op-tv-te-zien~b65dd6c7/

https://www.parool.nl/nieuws/boom-chicago-ook-op-tv~bebc3628/

https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comedy_Central_News

BOOM CHICAGO CCN CREW
Producer: Andrew Moskos
Segment Producer: Christy Ju
Exec Producer / Head Writer: Pep Rosenfeld
Directors: Matt Chapman, Becky Nelson
Presenter / Writer: Greg Shapiro
Presenter / Writer: Lauren Flans
Writer / Super Catty Celebrity Bitch: Michael Diederich
Head Writer / Ensemble S1: Brendan Hunt
Writers & Ensemble:
Lolu Ajayi
Rob AndristPlourde
Hilary Bauman
Jen Burton
Hans Holsen
Brian Jack
Mike OT
Jeffrey Spalburg
Andel Sudik

Dutch Producers:
Maurice Hols
Kaja Wolffers
Geert-Martin van der Jagt

18 Sept., 2008

September 6, 2022 In Blog

GREG SHAPIRO COMEDY DATES SEPT 2022

GREG SHAPIRO COMEDY DATES SEPTEMBER 2022
5 Sept., 2022

It’s comedy season again! I’m working on two new shows, and I’ll be making a lot of appearances coming up. See dates below

SHOW ONE – Pep & Greg Save America
Pep Rosenfeld and I have been making comedy shows together since 1985. Our new duo standup show is scheduled for the 2022 US Midterm Elections in November. My pitch was for a poster with ‘Pep & Greg Save America’ and an image of us putting a pillow over the face of Uncle Sam. But then again – maybe Joe ‘Dark Brandon’ Biden is giving us something worth saving…

SHOW TWO – Dutch to the Rescue
Based on my video series ‘Climate News Comedy,’ I realize we all need something – anything – to make climate news funny. Luckily, I live in the Netherlands. Dutch people be like: “Rising sea levels? No problem! We’ll just make more land.” If Jesus would come back and walk on water, Dutch people would say “Ja, ja… we do that all the time.” But what about the farming crisis? What to do with all the manure from Dutch livestock mega-stalls? No problem, they’ll just spray it on Parliament.

PLUS IMPROV
Improv comedy is pure joy, and I haven’t had enough lately. I’ll be joining a couple improv shows in September, and look for me to add even more coming up.

Greg Shapiro September Dates

Here are some dates and links and details –

Fri 9 Sept. IMPROV. A’dam. Crea (Post-show jam 10pm)
https://www.easylaughs.nl/event-info/show-stand-up-meet-the-cast-sept-9

Sat. 10 Sept. IMPROV. A’dam. Boom Chicago ‘Shot of Improv’ 10pm
https://boomchicago.nl/

Sun. 11 Sept. STANDUP. A’dam. Vondel Bunker 9/11 show 8pm
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/socrates-ironic-stand-up-comedy-september-11th-2022-vondelbunker-amsterdam-tickets-411472133227?fbclid=IwAR3Ny0Had2nYNwucxzOr5JghVrs52KV80KitxBcpMZNT8_hzQFPQeUC2cnc

Wed. 14 Sept. 14 STANDUP. A’dam. Comedy Cafe Open mic 8pm
https://www.comedycafe.nl/amsterdam/

Sat. 17 Sept. 17 IMPROV. A’dam. Boom Chicago ‘Shot of Improv’ 10pm (to be confirmed)
https://boomchicago.nl/

Fri. 23 Sept. STANDUP. A’dam. Boom Chicago, 10pm (post-show set, workshop ‘Pep & Greg Save America’)
https://boomchicago.nl/

Sat. 24 Sept. STANDUP. Utrecht. ComedyHuis, Domplein 4 8:30pm
https://comedyhuis.nl/agenda-en-tickets/

Thurs. 29 Sept. STANDUP. A’dam. Boom Chicago, 9pm (post-show set, workshop ‘Pep & Greg Save America’)
https://boomchicago.nl/

April 6, 2022 In Blog

The EU Needs a Late Night Comedy Show | a TED Talk by Greg Shapiro

The EU Needs a Late Night Comedy Show | a TED Talk by Greg Shapiro
6 April, 2022

Now that Europe’s best-known comedian is busy doing his Winston Churchill impression in Ukraine, Europe needs a new Head Comedian. Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has given a big boost to European unity. Time to capitalize on our common sense of community?

Now more than ever, the EU needs a late night comedy show.

Granted, this argument is one I’ve been making for years. In fact it was in 2021 that I made this TED talk for TEDx VU Amsterdam: ‘The EU Needs a Late Night Comedy Show.’

It has been proven: Comedy helps cognition, especially in younger demographics – exactly the ones we need to engage. In America, a majority of 18-35 year-olds say they get most of their news from late night comedy programs, like The Daily Show. And for good reason! Jokes engage emotion. Emotion aids cognition.

More specifically, a study from the University of Pennsylvania concludes that humor helps people remember news better. And it makes them more likely to share the news with others. (watch the video)
Maybe there’s a reason for the popularity of comedy shows like The Daily Show, The Late Show, and Late Night with Seth Meyers (my former colleague).

WHY IS THERE NO LATE NIGHT COMEDY SHOW FOR THE EU?
In a way, there is. In 2017, Dutch late night comedian Arjen Lubach achieved international success with his viral video ‘Netherlands Second,’ (for which I provided the voice). There are German late night comedians like Jan Boehmermann and Oliver Welke.

Personally, I’ve hosted my a late night comedy show in the Netherlands: COMEDY CENTRAL NEWS: Because Dutch News is News Too. I’ve even hosted a YouTube version of a show called THE UNITED STATES OF EUROPE: Giving EU leaders the respect they deserve by ridiculing them on a regular basis.

My mission was to create a network of EU comedy correspondents. I would still love to make this dream a reality. All I would need is a generous subsidy from an intra-governmental agency that’s happy to throw away money on hopeless projects in arts & culture.
…THAT’S THE VERY DEFINITION OF THE EU.

If you fund it, I will come.

The United States of Europe: MAKING FUN OF THE EU, THE AMERICAN WAY.

WATCH:

March 1, 2022 In Blog

Arjen Lubach: Curse Breaker (So Says Greg Shapiro)

Arjen Lubach: Curse Breaker (So Says Greg Shapiro)
28 February, 2022

Is it time for the Netherlands to get its own long-lasting daily late night comedy show? Looks like the answer is YES. Arjen Lubach has already mastered the weekly format of John Oliver’s ‘Last Week Tonight.’ Why not go for daily? Introducing De Avondshow! It’s really good. The reviews are good. Now if only we’d give him time to really find his form…
Here are a couple of quotes I gave to Dutch newspapers about De Avondshow.

Het Parool Friday, 18 February 2022
‘Will Arjen Lubach Succeed? – ’
by Roelf Jan Duin

Pullquote: “We’re already putting De Avondshow under a magnifying glass. For Arjen, the best thing would be if we just gave him time to get into the groove and work out the bugs.”

“On Comedy Central in 2007, Greg Shapiro tried a Dutch late night comedy show: the daily Comedy Central News. Together with his improv comedy group Boom Chicago, he brought Dutch news ‘in an American way.’ He remembers how heavy it could be. “If you’re making a weekly show – like we did in season two – you can say ‘I’m just not feeling it today. Let’s try a fresh angle tomorrow.’ With a daily format, you don’t have that luxury. Having to turn out jokes on a daily basis, that inevitably produces a lot more stress.”
…
Actually, we should give De Avondshow plenty of time before we start looking too closely, says Shapiro. (Shapiro who in 2017 did the Trump voice for the ‘America First – Netherlands Second’ video) Remember, with Zondag Met Lubach it took a few seasons before Arjen Lubach found his form – and his ratings. At the start he was getting maximum 300,000 viewers, but during his last season he was averaging 2 million.

“We’re already putting De Avondshow under a magnifying glass. For Arjen, the best thing would be if we just gave him time to get into the groove and work out the bugs. Instead, here we are – before he’s even started with one episode – commenting on his show in the paper. We are part of the problem!”
https://www.parool.nl/kunst-media/lukt-het-arjen-lubach-wel-met-de-avondshow~bb7ba224/

De Volkskrant Monday, 21 February 2022

‘Elke Dag Lubach’
by Ashwant Nandram.

Comedy Central News (2007)

Presenter Greg Shapiro: “When the American channel Comedy Central came to the Netherlands, they wanted to have one show with original content. They asked Boom Chicago to make a late night show, and they wanted me to host it. They were aiming for a combination of The Daily Show and The Muppet Show. And they wanted it in English.
“Our first episodes were tough, but we had a sharp learning curve. We knew from The Daily Show that it’s smart to spread the work load to different recurring correspondents. We had a roving reporter to investigate typical Dutch traits, such as forming a funeral circle for birthday parties. We had a super catty celebrity bitch. And we had a black man to comment on Zwarte Piet.

“We worked with a minimalistic budget. But after a few months they realized how expensive a daily show can be. We were getting decent ratings, but they were getting the same result from showing old episodes of Rosanne, which were way cheaper. After one season, we tried a second season only weekly. But eventually they pulled the plug.”
“The only reason we can’t seem to have a successful late night show is that Dutch people seem to be too impatient. People forget that most successful American late night stars had years to develop themselves. Jon Stewart was making The Daily Show in the dark for 3 years before people started noticing him in the 2000 election. He used that time to develop his own voice, his show’s identity. The same story for Seth Meyers taking over Late Night. So my request for the tv world: give Lubach time. Let him find his form.”
https://www.volkskrant.nl/mensen/grappig-relevant-en-snel-nieuwe-talkshow-belooft-lubachs-grootste-uitdaging-te-worden~baff13bb/