“Before the Show”

This image was captured by my good buddy Tucker Lucas. The ritual before a LineBenders show was to put together a setlist. The “games” we play. The list starts out the same and then varies depending on the audience, the venue and a few other industry secrets (do I have to use a microphone?). 20 years of improvisation and crowd work become a science. I try and teach the importance of a well crafted games list to students when they are preparing a show. Balancing physicality, audience participation, sight lines and more.

I haven’t had to do this prep in a long time. The pandemic halted our businesses and even caused a ripple effect of just getting paid from events that took place prior to any shutdowns. I am so incredibly proud of the work the LineBenders have done since we began in 2001. Yep, this is our 20th anniversary year! Not only have we volunteered to perform for events from church basement spaghetti feed charity supper to performing on the deck of the USS Lexington during a Wounded Warrior Project fundraiser. These performers make things up out of thin air and even after 20 years, they still surprise me with a character or show stopping line.

To be clear, this is not a eulogy for The LineBenders. We are hurt and struggling, but this isn’t the end. As the world begins to open up and the vaccinated are up for some gathering for laughs – I ask that you remember the venues, the promoters, the performers, the musicians, the roadies, the technicians, the ticket takers, the person who asks to put a poster up in your entry way and everyone else I have forgotten who has spent the last year struggling.

We lost venues. We lost individuals who were just about to make it big. Some started down other paths and some are now buried. The live events industry creates moments that define periods of your life. Did you ever know someone who followed “The Grateful Dead” in a VW bus and they remember the era fondly or possibly as the “best time in their life?” What about that holiday party when they brought in the comedian who had everyone in stitches for 90 minutes and helped you forget about a trying time in the office. Maybe you get through winter thinking about an outdoor concert in the summer or plan vacations around entertainment. There is a reason why Las Vegas has so many shows – people love to say “I saw _______ live!”

Please. Open your wallets and buy tickets when you are comfortable going out. Tip generously when you pick your coat up from the coat check. Hire local performers when you can and add those pieces of patronage to your budget. I always think of The LineBenders as a piece of the economic pump. We perform for you, you pay us. We in turn spend that money at local restaurants or hiring fancy tax accounts. Those people build up their businesses and employee more people. Those companies need entertainment and boom – the circle starts all over again!

I’ll finish this up and see if I can put together a show list and test out that muscle memory. I had to put on my performance suit the other week and found an old setlist in my coat pocket. A great reminder of where we were and now we can focus on what the future holds.

Thanks for the laughs – we’ll see you soon.

ADDITIONAL CONTENT BY JJ GORDON:

Additional Content by JJ Gordon:

KFGO Blog – Dressing Up Like John Candy

KFGO Blog – 50 of My Favorite Saturday Night Live Sketches!

KFGO Blog – Virtual Monopoly?!?! Yes, please!

KFGO Blog – How I Learned the States and Their Capitals

KFGO Blog – The Most Embarrassing Picture From My Youth

KFGO Blog – A Tale of Two Murders

KFGO Blog – The Three R’s of Remembering My Father

(Listen to JJ Gordon every weekday from 11am to 2pm on It Takes 2 with Amy and JJ . On the Mighty 790AM KFGO or on our app!)