Since the comedy wave splashed over Boston in the early ’80s, Tony V has continuously solidified his legacy as a local legend. Aside from his infectious smile, relatable material, and the slew of TV and film credits he’s accrued over the years, the man with “Viveiros” on his birth certificate has also maintained an image as the gatekeeper to the new generation of homegrown stand-up, with an innumerable amount of hosting gigs for charity benefits, as well as showcases of up-and-coming local talent.
This Saturday night (April 14), the Charlestown native is at it again — this time, with a whole new cast of characters.
The Boston Comedy Come Up, going down at the Shubert Theatre, features an eclectic octet of some of the city’s most engaging and enduring comedic voices. And it arrives with a lineup that’s sure to keep the chuckles rolling down Tremont Street: Dan Boulger, Bethany Van Delft, Will Noonan, Mike Whitman, Dan Crohn, Orlando Baxter, Graig Murphy, and last but not least, Lamont Price.
Price, who has entertained crowds since an on-the-spot rendition of the Scooby-Doo theme song during a show-and-tell when he was six years old, isn’t exactly new to the Boston comedy scene. This isn’t his first rodeo, but even still, after years of slangin’ jokes behind the mic all over the city, and all over New England for that matter, it’s the consistent dissatisfaction he feels in his own comedic evolution that has the Dorchester native sticking around as an ambassador of the current scene.
“My problem is that I’m never happy with where I am as a performer,” Price tells Vanyaland. “I’ve gotten great advice from great comics, where they’ve told me that I’ll look back on the best set of my life, and I’ll still think ‘I wish I did this and that,’ but that’s just the tortured artist in me, and being my own worst critic.”
While he’s quick to critique himself at any chance he can get, Price won’t hesitate for a second to boost the comedy chops of his friends who will be joining him on the Shubert stage come Saturday night, and because of the confidence he has in his fellow comics, it gives him more comforting in doing material that may or may not prove to fall flat.
“The lineup of this show is insane! And because the lineup is insane, it gives me another reason to not be afraid to do what I want to do, material-wise, because if the crowd hates me, there’s nothing but killers the rest of the show, so I could get buried very quickly by an avalanche of amazing comedians who can cover up my mistakes. Every comedian on the show is a friend of mine, and they’re all amazing.”
The Boston Comedy Come Up is not only a chance for Bostonians to witness the comedic talents from across the city, but for comedians to see what their colleagues are up to.
“When you get to a certain point, where everyone is so busy with their careers, you don’t get to see each other as much, because you’re all doing different things,” Price adds, “so it’s always fun to be able to come together to do a show like this, because it means you get to all hang out together again.”
BOSTON COMEDY COME UP :: Saturday, April 14 at Shubert Theatre, 265 Tremont St. in Boston, MA :: 7:30 p.m., all ages, $31 to $41 :: Advance tickets :: Boch Center event page :: Featured image via screengrab
