Last Comic Standing to Return – Tryouts Start This Month

The search is about to begin for more comedians to take part in the second Last Comic Standing.

NBC has announced that between January 13 and January 31, talent scouts Bob Read and Ross Mark, from The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, will once again host tryouts. With them will be two new executive producers for LCS, Dan Cutforth and Jane Lipsitz. The first stop is L.A. on the 13th, the last is Tampa on the 31st. Here are the dates that have been released by the NBC Press department for open auditions:

Open Auditions on Tuesday, January 13, at The Hollywood Improv (8162 Melrose) in L.A. at 10am. There will be two free, open to the public, shows featuring the best of the “callbacks” (the comedians picked by the judges as possible finalists) at 8:00 pm, January 13 & 14. Reservations must be made, by clicking here.

Open Auditions on Monday, January 19, at The Addison Improv (4980 Beltline Rd, #250) in Addison, TX, at 10am. There will be a free, open to the public, show featuring the best of the “callbacks” at 8:00 pm, January 19. For reservations click here.

Open Auditions on Thursday, January 22, at The Comic Strip (1568 Second Ave, between 81st & 82nd St) in New York, New York, at 10am. No public show listed as of now, but you can get more info by clicking here.

Open Auditions on Sunday, January 25, at The Comedy Connection at Faneuil Hall (245 Quincy Market Place) in Boston, MA, at 10am. There will be a free, open to the public, show featuring the best of the “callbacks” at 8:00 pm, January 25. Also, on January 15 & 16, Rich Vos, Dave Mordal, and Cory Kahaney will be performing at the club (but that show will cost you $18). Click here for more info.

Open Auditions on Tuesday, January 27, at Zanies Comedy Showplace (2025 Eighth Ave, South) in Nashville, TN, at 10am. Zanies’ website currently does not list any free show. Tuesday is also a dark night for them. Still, with the date just announced something may be added in the next few days. You can check back here later to see if that changes.

Open Auditions on Thursday, January 29, at Zanies Comedy Club (1548 N. Wells) in Chicago, IL, at 10am. There will be a free, open to the public, show featuring the best of the “callbacks” at 8:00 pm, January 29. Click here for more info.

Open Auditions on Saturday, January 31 at The Improv (1600 E. 8th Ave, C-112) in Tampa, FL, at 9am. No public show listed (due to Margaret Cho performing that night). Click here for more info on the club.

Please keep in mind that the open-call auditions are specifically for comedians trying out for the show and are not intended for the general public. So unless you’re planning on participating in the tryouts (and they do stress on the NBC site that it IS an open-call for everyone), the only thing you’ll likely see during the day at the club is a bunch of people standing in the cold and shuffling in line. A couple of the clubs are already listing some additional information about the auditions on their websites, so anyone interested in trying out should contact the clubs for more details. Also, NBC.com has the following notes posted for those interested: All shows start at 10AM unless otherwise noted. We do not guarantee that everyone will be seen and we reserve the right to stop a performance at anytime during the audition. Also, the line may be cut off at anytime during the day.

As listed above, however, most of the clubs will be having a show later in the evening (and in the case of the L.A. Improv, over two nights) for the auditioning comedians that were asked to come back by the judges. It should be pointed out that, while the shows are listed as “free,” most of the clubs require a two-drink minimum, so you’ll still be paying a little to watch the show.

The show's second edition will continue to be hosted and executive produced by Jay Mohr, although experienced producers Dan Cutforth and Jane Lipsitz have also joined as executive producers. The ten finalists will again live together in a house where they perform against each other regularly. The prize will once again involve an exclusive contract with NBC. There have been no hints of any changes that might be made to the original format, but the release did not mention any other prizes, such as a Comedy Central special that was part of the package for Dat Phan, the first winner.

Speaking of Dat Phan, the NBC press release indicates that, "Since he won, Phan has become the headlining act at comedy clubs nationwide." However, some who have attended the shows beg to differ, as they have told RealityNewsOnline that Phan has been acting as more in the role of emcee, with a short opening act, than as a headliner in many cases. His Comedy Central special will be airing at 10pm on January 30th, but Phan seems to be concentrating more on his acting career, with an appearance on the NBC drama, The West Wing, coming up, as well as a film, Cellular, and doing voice work on a cartoon for Nickelodeon.

As for some of the other comics from the first season, RealityNewsOnline has been told that Dave Mordal will be a correspondent for the show during the searches, although full details are a bit sketchy at this time. Speaking of Mordal, for those who live in the Stamford, CT, area, there will be a “class reunion” for Dave, Cory, Rich, and Ralphie when they perform at the Palace Theatre on Saturday, January 17, at 8pm. Tickets and more details about the show can be found at www.onlyatsca.com.

Of course, all this is just the beginning of news about Last Comic Standing 2. When more details are know, or if we find out anything about changes, we will be certain to pass it on to readers.

You can e-mail Dale about this column or his other projects at justabob@iglou.com. His book, The Urban Legends of Rock and Roll: You Never Can Tell, is now available! You can click here to buy that one and any of Dale’s other books. David Bloomberg is the Editor of RealityNewsOnline and can be reached at RNO@pobox.com.

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