Bleav in The Comedy Bureau Field Report
Comedy
About
The Comedy Bureau Field Report, a nice, neat rundown of comedy news (and news about nothing else), with Comedy Bureau founder and director Jake Kroeger.
Episodes
- Ep. 288: Sydney Kane & Tragedy Plus Time as a Musical
When doing the alchemy of taking heartbreak and turning it into comedy, it often manifests as stand-up or a short film. Doing an entire solo musical is a whole other incredibly ambitious endeavor and one Sydney Kane has found her way to do…
- Ep. 287: Maggie Winters & Embracing All Sides of Live, Laugh, Love
As the volume of comedy specials released increases at an exponential rate, one really must go against the grain to stand out. Chicago's own Maggie Winters took that to heart with her very comedy special, which is a recorded edition of her…
- Ep. 286: Chris Colthurst & Better Living Through Improv
Taking a cue from San Diego's biggest annual happening, Comic-Con, Chris Colthurst is paving a way in similar fashion for all things celebrating and enlightening in the art form of theatrical improvisation by founding ImprovCon . We talk t…
- Ep. 285: Jeremy Pinsly & Opening a Brand Spankin' New NYC Comedy Club in 2026
Believe it or not, NYC is about to add to its leading comedy club per capita stats with its newest spot, The Greenpoint Comedy Club . We get into the nitty gritty and the joy and everything in between with opening a new comedy club in one…
- Ep. 284: Nikolai Phalen & Dreaming Big Comedy Dreams (and Often in English) in Barcelona
Many of you are constantly pondering what's mutating in the Austin comedy scene, but not only are there plenty of other ever evolving comedy scenes around the country including an English language one in Barcelona, Spain. We chat with Niko…
- Ep. 283: Jackie Kashian & Finding Joy in Rage
Jackie Kashian has long been and continues to be one of our absolute favorite comedians working today. Even in such dire, seemingly hopeless times, her brand new hour special, Alter-Kashian , much of which has to do with a very timely rage…
- Ep. 282: Chandler Dean & Sparking Joy Through Abolishing Everything
Oft these days, the question, "How do you do comedy in times like these?", gets asked into the wind only to go nowhere. Yet, comedy persists and we'd highlight Chandler Dean and his beautifully subversive comedy game show, Abolish Everythi…
- Ep. 281: Rachel Olson & Being of Service with a Seat at the Table
Taking even part of the reins to a long-standing comedy institution such as The Upright Citizens Brigade can be a tall order and then some. Thankfully, comedy industry veteran, one Rachel Olson has stepped in as Executive Director of UCB L…
- Ep. 280: Natasha Mercado & Building Your Own Corner of Clown
Natasha Mercado started off 2026 with a bang by putting on very first festival, Soft Clown Fest, a one-day, full throttle celebration of "soft clown", Mercado's own particular movement within the clowning discipline of comedy. Natasha take…
- Ep. 279: Mark Vigeant & The Unspoken Inspiration of Getting Your Ass Kicked
When you're someone like the brilliant Mark Vigeant , the road in comedy can be very winding and circuitous, especially for the fact that he's setting to break new ground and push boundaries in the art form of comedy. This week's TCB Field…
- Ep. 278: TCB's Jake & What Goes Into Making a Year End List
We kick off 2026 at The Comedy Bureau Field Report by giving a big ol' peel back of the curtain to show you what goes into making our 100 Best Things in Comedy We Were Witness To in No Particular Order list (and year end comedy lists in ge…
- Ep. 277: Ethan Stanislawski & Being Timely in Comedy (Whether You Like It or Not)
When divisiveness is the order of the day, some of the best bridges are the most personal stories that highlight the things all humanity has in common (which is almost always more than we think) no matter who is telling said story or what…
- Ep. 276: Andy Sandford & Keeping Jokes as Tight Possible
Andy Sandford 's philosophy of trimming all the fat from all his comedy has served him well in all his years in the art form and did him especially proud with his latest special, &y S&ford, freshly released. We chat with him all about the…
- Ep. 275: Jamie Linn Watson & Getting Back to The Old Internet
There was so much innocence and purity to those 2005 days of YouTube, but, then again, none of it was monetized. With that in mind, this week's TCB Field Report has the star of the brand span new indie comedy Skit , Jamie Linn Watson , joi…
- Ep. 274: Spaghetti Festival & Sticking on the Wall (Together)
The Spaghetti Festival @ The Elysian represents a wholly rejuvenating spark of imagination and creativity as it puts up never-before-seen, never-before-produced works from some of the most original voices in and around comedy in LA. For th…
- Ep. 273: R.M. Aranda & Bringing Clown to All
The popularity of the corner of comedy that is clown continues to burgeon, especially in LA. In that growth, there is a push for bringing clown to more than just niche audiences, namely children. One, R.M. Aranda is one such clown that aim…
- Ep. 272: American High Digital & Being Part of a Burgeoning Comedy Empire
The coming-of-age of comedy will forever be a staple of comedy film and television as it both continues to resonate with audiences across the generations and also, well, time only goes one direction as far as we experience it. With that in…
- Ep. 271: Joey Greer & Defying Convention Starting from the Get Go
With so many specials and hours of comedy already in existence and dozens of them getting put out every month, how could you possibly turn the form on its head? Well, we found out exactly how when we talked to the amazing, description-defy…
- Ep. 270: Fabrizio Copano & Getting Your Citizenship So You Can Release Your Comedy Special
Such are the times that being a a brown-skinned comedian, much less one from a country South of the U.S. border, is, shall we say, dicey. That's only one of a myriad of reasons why Chilean comedian, now U.S. citizen Fabrizio Copano made su…
- Ep. 269: Beth Stelling & Doing a Whole Comedy Special About Your Landlord
The comedy of Beth Stelling offers up a warmth and a joy that feels rarer and rarer in this world. Even when she does a whole special about a toxic landlord, Stelling's voice is such a great relief. We chit chat in-depth with Beth about th…
- Ep. 268: Isaac Landfert & Keeping an Alt Comedy Theater Alive IN THIS ECONOMY
4319 Melrose Ave. in Los Angeles has long been a home for alt comedy and despite the insanely chaotic times we live in, it will continue to be that way, in large part due to the efforts of Isaac Landfert . Formerly the YARD Theater, that v…
- Ep. 267: Lisa Curry & Possibly Doing Comedy at the End of It All?
Much of the pervasive strangeness of these times is that there is palpable feeling of everything coming to an end, all while many, small everyday things in many people's lives weirdly continuing for the time being. We get into the thick of…
- Ep. 266: Bri Pruett & Building the Hr. in 2025
Building an hour of stand-up, especially the first time you do it, is already hard enough with having no experience doing so. In 2025, with the ways of the world, both actual and of comedy, the consideration and craft that has to be put in…
- Ep. 265: Ali Hart & Producing Comedy as Agent of Change(?)
In such dire times, the roles of comedy being both offering a salve to reality and speaking truth to power can seem to be at odds with each other. However, there are ways to walk such a tight line and we talk with celebrated veteran indie…
- Ep. 264: Walker Ward & Pedicab Powered Blind Dating
Romance and the quest for it will forever remain fertile ground for comedy no matter how the art form changes and evolves. IG/Tik Tok sensation Walker Ward marches, or, more accurately, pedals, forward in this regard with Pedicab Connectio…
- Ep. 263: Shannon O'Neill & Molding Comedy Into a Potholder
While many of you have to come, know, and love the fantastic Shannon O'Neill through improv and wherever you watch TV, she has discovered another marvelous facet of herself through her work in ceramics. In fact, she's just about to close o…
- Ep. 262: David Drake & The Power of Bowling Alleys
From just the look of Big Break , David Drake 's third and latest hour, you might be surprised that Drake has helped build an entire corner of NYC comedy through the hallowed ground of The Gutter in Brooklyn (that also happens to be a love…
- Ep. 261: Linzy Beltran & Comedia Por Todo
At the same time, comedy can indeed speak truth to power and also express joy from one's unique perspective, but it can be quite the balancing act to do both at the same time. One wondrous Linzy Beltran manages the feat with a bold stroke…
- Ep. 260: Erica Bitton & 10 Years of a Solo Show
Almost always, the work that goes into a deeply personal solo show is almost entirely invisible. There are years of work and reworking and giving up and getting re-obsessed that drive a person to create something possibly so unique and ins…
- Ep. 259: Julie Seabaugh & Documenting Marc Maron
Julie Seabaugh has been and still very much is one of our absolute favorite people in comedy because, like us, she has dedicated blood, sweat, and tears to the telling of stories of, about, in, and around comedy. Following her endeavors as…
- Ep. 258: Victoria Male & Revisiting the 90s the Good Way
A lot of what has been dug up from the 90s, mostly by Gen Z, has kind of been a rude look into the mirror for Millennials, but acclaimed, veteran screenwriter Victoria Male has cooked up a comedy feature, Whatever Happened to Baby J? , tha…
- Ep. 257: Sam Walt Jones & Manifesting the Theatrical in Live Comedy
The undertaking of putting on a live comedy show can be a lot, but putting on a full scale, multi-week, improvised parody of a celebrated TV franchise is a whole other sport. Yet, that seems to be Sam Walt Jones ' favorite thing to do as h…
- Ep. 256: Business Casual & Focused Chaos for Comedic Gold
Cory Peter Lane, Jeremy Elder, and Hunter Sailing, better known collectively as the wondrously rambunctious Business Casual, are leveling up to having their very own ranch of controlled chaos with their new show on All Things Comedy, the a…
- Ep. 255: Laser Webber & Defying with Queer Joy
These days, the notion of representation mattering is more crucial than it has been in a long time, especially when it comes to trans/gender non-conforming/non-binary folks. Thank goodness for the likes of people such as Laser Webber , a d…
- Ep. 254: Alexis Dubus & Attempting to Translate Comedy in 2025
The brilliant Alexis Dubus has made an entire career out of not only playing a character, but playing a misanthropic Frenchman, Marcel Lucont and that presents quite a winding path here in 2025, especially as Dubus is set to play a handful…
- Ep. 253: Rebecca Drysdale & Using The Force With Improv
Still, to this day, Rebecca Drysdale is one of the funniest improvisers we've ever seen. Coupled with her vast writing experience, we'll take any chance to have her on TCB Field Report and what a chance it was for this episode. We legitima…
- Ep. 252: Pilot Season & aEp. 252: Pilot Season & Growing an Improv Show Out of the Writers' Strike
At a time where AI is threatening writing jobs and Trump is mercilessly dismantling all the DEI initiatives that he can, a hybrid improv/writers show, Pilot Season , rises, phoenix-like, from the rubble of the WGA Strike. Hosts/creators Ch…
- Ep. 251: YALL Fest & Ep. 251: YALL Comedy Fest & Juggling Truth to Power & Safe Spaces in Comedy
A comedy festival premised on the idea of punching up and calling it the absurdity of those in power and also providing space for representation for those that are in the margins is now, more so than in a long time, pretty crucial. Thank g…
- Ep. 250: Skyler Higley & MANDAL & Guaranteeing GUARANTEED!
Skyler Higley and MANDAL are on the precipice of making what very well may be LA's next stand up to always be at with GUARANTEED! presented by Vulture (and produced by our very own Jake Kroeger). The trio breaks down launching this very sp…
- Ep. 249: Sarah Claspell & Doing Improv Literally Everywhere
Even though improv had one of the longest roads back from COVID, it's back and more expansive than we remember. Sarah Claspell, a longtime celebrated veteran of improv in LA, walks us, on this week's TCB Field Report, through how that's ha…
- Ep. 248: Kristal Adams & Fields-of-Dreams-ing It in NYC
The wonderful Kristal Adams packed up from LA a few years ago and journeyed to the America's other comedy mecca, NYC. Adams had definitely established herself in the scene in LA, but opted for the wealth of stage time that New York. Over t…
- Ep. 247: Joel Mandelkorn & Closing Out a 20 Year Weekly Show
Legendary weekly comedy show, Hot Tub with Kurt Kristen , just marked its 20th year anniversary this past weekend and, for now, has come to its end. It marks the end of an era and the wonderment of what lies ahead with the new era ahead. A…
- Ep. 246: Teresa Lo & Sticktoitiveness
Teresa Lo still very much is a fiercely determined up and coming stand-up comedian in the vast and highly competitive LA comedy scene. The proof rests in the fact that she is returning to telling jokes on stage after being violently assaul…
- Ep. 245: Meg Penney & What Goes Into Running a Cool Brooklyn Venue
As strange as it is to say since so much insanity has happened from Jan. 1st onwards, Happy New Year to you all. We're thankful to talk all things NYC comedy, specifically at the wondrous venue that is Littlefield in Brooklyn with Junior B…
- Ep. 244: Lindsay Adams & The Neverending Quest of Being Liked
This week's TCB Field Report has a frank conversation with beloved LA scene staple Lindsay Adams on her constant quest to better herself as both a comedian and a person. This desire fueled her latest endeavor, an experimental solo show whe…
- Ep. 243: Sam Morrison & Endless Miles of Your Solo Show
Sam Morrison , a wonderful, touring-round-the-world comedian, is hot on the trail of being the next big solo show turning into, possibly, a Broadway sensation (and probably a big time special) with his Sugar Daddy . This week's TCB Field R…
- Ep. 242: Jenny Chalikian/Romantic Comedy & The World's First & Only Bicoastal Romance Novel Store Comedy Show
To do a live comedy show for 8 years is a feat, but try upping the ante to doing it in a romance novel only store and franchise it to the the romance novel store's second location all the way across the country, THEN record an entire album…
- Ep. 241: Emily Browning and the Path to Comedy Balloon Enlightenment
The path of every artist is something truly singular and, far enough long, something amazing and often unprecedented. Emily Browning is marvelous example of this as she has found her way in and throughout stand-up, clown, writing, acting,…
- Ep. 240: John Hastings and the One After that Dumb Election in 2024
After really, truly, deeply not having the time to do an episode last week because of one of the stupidest elections in our lifetime, we are grateful to reconvene with the Field Report and the realignment of comedy in LA and elsewhere with…
- Ep. 239: Lauren Leroux & Standing Out When Everyone Else Is Trying to Stand Out Just Like You
Lauren Leroux , the host/star of the illustrious NYC variety show, The Cigarette Club , talks with us about why she's bringing the show to a close as well as the bright shining horizon she's headed towards with her top secret new show. Lau…