Last week I was invited to Skalar Music Hungary's stand-up comedy night at the New Orleans Pub (Lovag u. 5). I walk by this place several times a week and sometimes it looks open, sometimes it looks closed. I had a huge surprise when I entered though, it looks fabulous. With a half-shell stage and a ceiling that can be opened in the summer, proper lighting and sound equipment, and even a raised area for drummers, I was impressed. However, I was even more impressed with the show.

I have said it before, and I will say it again - doing stand-up has got to be one of the most difficult jobs. I could never do it. So when someone tries to do stand-up in their non-native language, you have to cut them some slack. I have seen several Hungarians attempt their acts in English with, in my opinion, very unsuccessful results. However, last night Péter András Kovács aka KAP was excellent! He not only had an excellent command of the language and his material, but he also knew what a foreign audience would like. Tin Vodopivec from Slovenia was also very good. After a 10 minute break for drink orders, the headliner Andrew Clover (UK) took the stage.

Splitting his routine into 5 stories about love. Andrew was excellent. He may not have elicited a lot of the huge laughs, but he made up for it in being a highly entertaining and dynamic storyteller on a mission. Everything was well scripted, but there was also room for good improv when needed. Like my friends Richie and Pablo, Andrew asks difficult and thought provoking questions about life. Very few could (or would) answer his thoughtful inquiries, such as: "How do you make love stay? and "What do you like most (or least) about your partner?" He even got the details down to a deliberate or not heart-shaped sweat stain on the back of his jacket as he left the stage. OK, he is English, so there had to be the requisite fart joke. But it was a funny fart joke. They are bringing funnyman Dave Thompson (UK) (husband of Eva Thompson, who just gave a sitar concert at Treehugger Dan's last Thursday) to the stage next on April 21st.