Photo by deJong MortifiedNovember 16th, 2007Coldtowne Theatre (4803 Airport Blvd.)[info] | [tickets]An obsession with Huey Lewis. The detailed diaries of a nerd molester. A girl's small town love of Nicholas Nickelby. True tales...ripped from the pages of diaries everywhere. Featuring a distinct lineup of local performers reading their own humiliating teenage journal entries, rap lyrics, philosophical musings and fictional shorts, Mortified makes its Austin debut this Friday night. Hailed as a "cultural phenomenon" by Newsweek...... [continue]

Every year comedians from around the area assemble to compete for the coveted title of "Funniest Person in Austin." For this month's installment in our interview series with performers from Austin's local comedy scene, we caught up with this year's winner—Bryan Gutmann. How long have you been doing stand-up? About three years now. I had been thinking about trying stand-up longer than that, but it took a while to get up the courage. What brought...... [continue]

Hello angst-ridden, middle school you. Coming this October, cult comedy MORTIFIED will be playing in Austin as part of their national comedy tour, and they are looking for your adolescent awesomeness. Got an old Trapper Keeper filled with humiliating poems to that girl in 6th period? A tome of fan fiction dedicated to Joey McIntyre? A full-length melodramatic tragedy written as a budding playwright? Haul out those rap lyrics, songs written in tribute to... [continue]

It's the short-haired waitress at Spider House, or the barista at Flipnotics. It's the winsome Bookpeople guy with glasses, or that guy in all the plays at Salvage Vanguard. It's your local secret crush. It's old news that Austin has evolved from a sleepy college town into a burgeoning city of big-city transplants, international ex-pats, Houston/Dallas refugees and former Californians. With this influx has come the influence of new ideas about urban density, mass...... [continue]

Tonight at Emo's, mc chris, the Yuppie Pricks and nerdcore rapper Terp2it (aka tireless local performer Chris Trew) will take the stage to rock your tighty whities. We recently snagged a copy of Terp2it's new album, The Freshest Dude, and sat down for a quick chat with him about his new release. How would you describe nerdcore to the uninitiated? I think it started as "rapping about something that's popular with nerds" like Star Wars.... [continue]

Few forms of entertainment elicit such fanatical, diverse opinions on what warrants the label of being "good" as comedy does. To this day, the mere mention of Andy Kaufman's name can set off a heated debate on whether "genius" or "talentless asshat" is more applicable, and the perceived injustice that the Freaks and Geeks fan club was dealt when network suits and critics downed one of Judd Apatow's earliest efforts still has teeth. All this...... [continue]

It's the your favorite bartender at Sao Paulo, or the girl in the cutoffs at El Chilito. It's the smokin' UPS guy, or one of the Lone Star Rollergirls. It's your local secret crush. It's hard to believe that it's been over sixteen years since Linklater's Slacker edified the collective and individual characters that make Austin, well, Austin. Although Liberty Lunch is long gone, the people that make our city great remain. And what...... [continue]

One of Austin's best-known solo performers is back in town. Through June 16th, Rob Nash performs College Freshman Year Sucks at the Vortex. His immensely successful shows feature him playing various characters inspired by his parochial, Texas upbringing. Continuing our monthly series on comedy performers, we talk to Rob about keeping characters straight, Lily Tomlin and the quality of a certain prop comedian's stash. How long have you been doing solo shows? Twenty years...... [continue]

It's the hot Astanga instructor at Yoga Yoga South, or the girl in the cutoffs at El Chilito. It's the smoking UPS guy or your favorite Lone Star Rollergirl. It's your local secret crush. Our column returns with an interview with one of Austin's local gallery owners and artists: E. Moises Diaz of Urban Roots Gallery. We received a request to interview him by a married lady (gasp!) who wrote not just on her behalf,...... [continue]

In addition to the wrap up of Fuse Box all over town, this weekend marks the first annual Ladies Are Funny Festival (LAFF) at the Hideout. Produced by local comedic powerhouses Girls, Girls, Girls, LAFF will bring together comic talent from Texas and beyond including performers from ensembles such as Massive (Houston), SuperOvum (Tulsa, OK) and Parallelogramophonograph (Austin). Opening night festivities include an afterparty featuring local glam band the Platforms. LAFF Schedule All shows...... [continue]

This month, the Austinist kicks off a monthly interview series with local alt-comedy performers featuring interviews with Austin's best stand-up, spoken word, sketch, improvisation, and comedic actors. For the inaugural interview, we hooked-up with Lisa deLarios, local stand-up and frequent performer on some of Austin's best know stages. She recently returned from performing at this year's Aspen Comedy Festival, and discusses New York, being an agrarian at heart and getting her start. How long have...... [continue]

Looking for something outside the bounds of SXSW? This weekend, Austin's Latino Comedy Project returns to Esther's Follies for three nights of fast-paced comedy from a distinctly Latino point of view, before heading to Los Angeles to perform for the suits at Comedy Central. From their press release: "With shows performed mostly in English with a touch of Spanglish, the LCP’s dazzling satire spans the comedic gamut with fast-paced, high-energy, live sketches and elaborate... [continue]

It's the handsome downtown gallery owner with curly hair or the hot Astanga instructor at Yoga Yoga South. It's the girl in the cutoffs at El Chilito or your favorite Lone Star Rollergirl. It's your local secret crush. Just in time to scope him out while you're hopping among downtown venues for SXSW, Austinist brings you this edition's interview: Drew, The Cute Pedicab Driver With the Slightest Southern Accent. Drew continues the streak of awesome...... [continue]

If tragedy + time = comedy gold, then satirization of what is arguably this country's darkest decade was far overdue. Enter Parallelogramophonograph, some of Austin's finest purveyors of genre improvisation. Previously, Austinist has highlighted Pgraph's unusual (and beguiling) combination of lit nerd, geekiness and comedic chops. Their new show, Parallelogramophonograph Presents: The 1930's, draws on this, poking fun at the Great Depression via a completely improvised story set in that era. In this week's show,... [continue]

We've been all over the city in this column, covering houses from the south side, all the way to the heart of suburbia. In this edition, Austinist returns to our love of life on the cheap. Artists, thrift store hawks and the underemployed by choice - no need to get over a barrel when buying those new digs. This lovable city is still choc-a-block with awesome homes to be had for under 200K, especially...... [continue]

For those of us who have tasted the good life--spending some part of our residency in the '04--the idea of living anywhere else in the city can induce sweaty palms and a sincere doubt about the viability of social life beyond Polvo's and bud-induced trips to Homeslice. In recent years however, the popularity of this neighborhood has driven up prices to the point that buying is significantly more expensive than renting, creating a financial...... [continue]

It's the handsome downtown gallery owner with curly hair or the hot Astanga instructor at YogaYoga South. It's the pedicab driver with the cute southern accent or your favorite Lone Star Rollergirl. It's your local, secret crush. Austinist is pleased to kick off the new year with this edition's interview: Patrick, The Orange Hat Bike Messenger Guy. We'd just about given up on this request—after months of scoping out messengers downtown. However, Lady Serendipity threw...... [continue]

For those of us who pine for a centrally-located Craftsman's-style bungalow, but refuse to pony up two fiddy per square foot or hold down an extreme job to bankroll it, this week's column focuses on the house that made America's heartland great - the ranch-style home of the 1950s and early 60s. A spate of home construction in Austin during this time--in areas that were then considered 'suburban'--provides creative and cost-concious house hunters with...... [continue]

Looking to take your affinity for the cabaret-revival to the next level? Described as "life drawing classes in a pub environment with counter-culture models," Dr. Sketchy--a cabaret-esque event that originated in New York--comes to Austin this Saturday, December 9th at Beerland. Saturday's show features Satan's Cheerleader Ruby Lamb as the live model. Dr. Sketchy Saturday, December 9th Beerland [Map] 6-9pm Tickets and table reservations can be had through email ($5-10) *Picture from somakitty on... [continue]

It's the Saturday Hatha instructor at YogaYoga South, or Orange Hat Bike Messenger guy. It's one of the Lone Star Rollergirls, or your favorite coffee house employee. It's your local secret crush. After spending many fruitless mornings skulking around Whole Foods, trying to meet the elusive "cute red-haired guy who works the (Whole Foods) counter up North," we move on to an entirely different Crush-Out request in the interest of keeping them coming. He's a...... [continue]