I went to Englewood, New Jersey to watch Jim Jefferies‘ latest standup comedy routine. In a nutshell, he absolutely killed it, and a series of random coincidences over the course of the evening made for a once in a lifetime performance.
It was a rainy drive from Queens into the Bronx and then New Jersey. I left extra early to avoid any traffic, which turned out to work quite well since traffic is usually ridiculous when traveling across the George Washington Bridge. Once across the bridge it was a short drive to Englewood. The performance was at the Bergen Performance Arts Center (PAC) which is right in the heart of town. Parking was available in lots for a fee, but I was able to find parking on the street, which after 6 p.m. is free. Based on where I parked and what it looked like a little while later, I either got lucky or showed up just early enough to get a good spot.
After parking we went to the Blue Moon Mexican Cafe for dinner. It was your typical Mexican restaurant. Seating wasn’t a problem, but as time progressed, again I realized we showed up just before the rush. The waiter came out with chips and salsa. The beer battered avocado wedges were a pretty good appetizer. My shrimp fajita dinner was just okay. After finishing up our meal, we walked towards the Bergen PAC and decided to stop at the Terra Restaurant & Bar for a drink before the show. We went to the bar where we met other people also going to the show. The restaurant was quite busy, but it seemed that most people who were eating where not attending the comedy show. Everyone at the bar was, because everyone, ourselves included, cleared out with 10 minutes to spare before the start of the show.
The building that now houses the Bergen PAC was originally opened in 1926 as a movie theater. Throughout its history it has changed ownership many times. It was closed many times, but then reinvented again to preserve art and music in the Northern New Jersey area. The interior of the lobby and refreshment bar was quite new, but you could see the architecture, particularly the stairs towards the balcony that was typical of architecture from the beginning of the golden era of Hollywood. When you walked into the theater you could see the history of the building around you, or at least I could. I have been in many community and state theaters across the east coast, and they all give off a similar vibe. Sadly, it was so dark that none of my photographs can show any of the details of the interior design of the theater. When we found our seats, we were actually closer to the stage than I expected. The lights dimmed, the line to the refreshment bar dwindled down and the show began.
The show was an absolute laugh factory. There was an opening act, but sadly I forgot to write down his name and could not find it on the internet. He was funny in his own right and did a good job of warming up the crowd. His material was quite eclectic, but possessed an edgy quality similar to the headliner. A few minutes after the opener finished, Jim Jefferies was welcomed by loud cheers from the audience as he took the microphone.
It took no time for Jim to get right into it. His act started with some impromptu jokes about the theater and its stage set up. First, there were monitors on the ground that he made fun of, because obviously a comic doesn’t need to hear himself like a live band. Then he made fun of the poorly stacked speakers on the sides of the stage that were reminiscent of stacked Jenga pieces. Finally, he slammed the oddly placed balconies on the sides of the stage wondering when the Muppets were going to appear. His ad-lib about the theater only upset the management and would become an issue later in the evening.
After a few minutes of making fun of some of the spectators in the front rows, it was obvious he was transitioning into his regular routine. His material was as always hysterically funny and the entire building was under his comedic spell. Out of respect for his act, I will not share much about the material that he is developing for his upcoming taping of the current tour. I will just say that he was going places that other comics would steer away from and his Bill Cosby bit made my stomach hurt I was laughing so hard. He was absolutely destroying the place when all of a sudden the fire alarm went off. This is when the show got really good.
Jim sat down, lit up a cigarette and figured he would ride out the alarm. Yet, the alarm wasn’t stopping. The management motioned for him from stage right. Did they really accuse him of causing the alarm by lighting the cigarette? Everyone present saw what had happened. The alarm went off, and it had nothing to do with Jim. In reaction, he started dumping on the management and the sound guy cut off his microphone. When it was turned back on Jim was livid. His verbal assault of the staff, particularly the sound guy was probably the best material of the night. It was all so spontaneous and the madness was spreading like a disease.
This began a dialogue between Jim and the crowd. It was entertaining. In many ways it reminded me of the beginning of a protest with Jim as the provocateur. As soon as the alarm stopped, it would start seconds later. Jim debated stopping, but the crowd urged him on and he delivered. Apparently, the alarm would continue to do this until the fire department came and no one wanted the show to stop. The building was not ablaze, yet the crowd was only getting fired up. The atmosphere only got more chaotic. Once the alarm did go off, the setting got even more intimate. Random people from the audience began yelling out bad jokes and other nonsensical statements. I don’t think they were hecklers, because they sounded like fans. Jim had a good time with them at their expense and was in no mood to stop. He toyed with the person whose crutches were meters away from their seat for obvious reasons and then the man who fell asleep in one of the first few rows. Finally, he worked his way back into the remainder of his material and finished up the evening.
By the time his set was over it was roughly a quarter past 11. It was a long 90 minute set, and everyone could see the amount of energy that Jim put into the act. Jim yelled at someone trying to record at one point in the evening and noted that putting clips on the internet will only dilute the product that he is trying to put out in an upcoming recording of the tour. I understand and respect that, but a full recording of that show would be priceless. Over the course of the evening Jim Jefferies was vulgar yet sensitive, rude yet apologetic, cruel yet kind. Much of his routine was interrupted only to set Jim into a frenzy of spontaneous near riotous rants. From the fire alarms to the sound guy jokes, it was a once in a lifetime kind of night.