Eli Leonard has ten days at Actors Temple Theatre to bring Good Showbiz, his clown comedy about Jewish show business, back to New York. The limited engagement opens on Thursday, November 12 and closes on November 21.
Leonard, best known for his work on Curb Your Enthusiasm, wrote the piece with Theodore Bressman, who also directs. Leonard plays Sandy Synagoguenstein, a showbiz host with apparently magical powers who steers the audience through the centuries to celebrate Jewish comedy and theater. The evening plays the Jewish stereotype for laughs and makes no secret of its other aim: it is a show, but it is also a business, and it sets out to earn real money along the way. The company sums it up as The King of Comedy crossed with Fiddler on the Roof.
Sarah Shtern appears alongside Leonard, and Nicole Demaio plays the music live. Sydney Feyder produces for Thruline Entertainment, and Actors Temple Theatre presents.
The production has released a short clip from the show.
If the clip does not load, watch it on YouTube.
The show began at The Elysian Theater in Los Angeles and has sold out in Los Angeles and Chicago. Leonard is an alumnus of UCB and Gaulier, performs regularly at The Laugh Factory and opens for touring comics including Elon Gold. Bressman, a WGA Award nominee, has written for Future Man, Miracle Workers, Pam & Tommy and Sausage Party: Foodtopia, contributed to the last three seasons of Curb Your Enthusiasm and co-created the Peacock/SYFY animated series The Pole. Shtern, a regular at The Elysian, trained in clown at École Philippe Gaulier and in improv at UCB and The Groundlings, and has performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
Performances are on Thursdays at 7pm, Saturdays at 7pm and Sundays at 3:30pm, and the show runs 75 minutes. It is recommended for ages 16 and up. Actors Temple Theatre is at 339 West 47th Street. Tickets cost $49–$99, fees included, and are on sale through Telecharge or by phone at 212-239-6200.
