Eddie Izzard's second stop on his latest tour, called "Stripped", was in the heart of Washington, DC at the DAR Constitution Hall. I was personally in attendance on May 1st. This is, in my opinion, one of the funniest comedians working today. This was a two hour, killer show filled with all new material. But this is not a comedian review. This is a venue review. While I spent most of the evening laughing my head off, I wished I was laughing my back off. I am 6'2" tall, and my wife is 5'6" tall. Walking out of that venue, we both agreed that it was the most uncomfortable show we've ever sat through. Not only were my knees straddling the head of the patron in front of me, but the acoustics where terrible. This was confirmed by the annoyed heckler in the back row who shouted out, "SPEAK INTO THE MIC! WE CAN'T HEAR YOU! THE ACOUSTICS HERE SUCK!!!" At least he was right. The hard, circular walls were not padded and bounced the sound around the room like school kids playing with a hot potato. If you had to put a visual picture on what it sounded like in that hall I would describe it like waves crashing in the ocean during a hurricane. So you just had to listen very closely and try to cut out all of the reverberation.
If you are ordering your tickets online, I strongly recommend picking them up at will-call. A half an hour until the show started, the line to get in for people with tickets in hand wrapped around the whole block. My heart sunk into my chest when I saw this 45 minute wait. I was relieved when I got to the will-call line and there were only 3 people in front of me. We got our tickets, walked in, sat down and played games on our phones while everyone else battled the crowd.
It is conveniently located on 18'th street (right around the corner from the White House). It is about a 10-15 minute walk from either Farragut West or North. There are parking garages in the area, but they of course cost about as much at your show ticket. There is on street parking available, but we all know those spots are always filled by cars that have no owners and thus never move. My advice: take the metro.
The $47 per ticket is only worth it for an entertainer of Eddie Izzard's caliber. It would take someone I really want to see to go back to the DAR Constitution Hall for a show. So if you're friend needs someone to go with them to see Hannah Montana... make sure you have other plans that evening.
2 comments:
what happened to reviewing DC comedians?
I haven't stopped reviewing DC comedians. This blog is intended to critique every aspect of the comedy scene in Northern Virginia to enhance the people's experience. The point of this post was to give information about this venue that hosts comedians so people who have never been there would be prepared for the experience if they attend a show there.
However, I am a man of the people. I will try my best to make it out and hear some jokes by next week and post a comedic review. But be careful what you wish for Nicky T... you may be next!!
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