Late-blooming senior uncovered in comic series
A twice-divorced, selfconfessed hustler who was an America’s Got Talent hit at 75 will make her Philippine stage debut in two unique shows at the Relik Bar, BGC, on Oct. 18 and the Union Jack Tavern, Makati, on Oct. 19 with a promise to deliver comedy like no other performer regardless of age.
Lynn Ruth Miller is widely known as the world’s oldest female stand-up comedian and will be in town to celebrate her 85th birthday. Her first show is called Aged To Imperfection and she’ll dish out her iconic one-liners in a hilarious style. The second show is called Barely Standing where she’ll sing, crack short, punchy jokes and maybe, even dance. One is different from the other so it’s worth checking out both acts.
Producer Dilip Budhrani said limited seats are available so it’s best to book now. There’s a discount awaiting early birds. It’s P1,000 for an advance buy and P1,250 for a seat at the door. Ruther Urquia will open both shows to be hosted by Aldo Cuervo. Doors will open at 6 p.m. with each show to start at 8 p.m.
An added attraction is an exclusive inspirational talk by Lynn on Oct. 19, 4 p.m., by invitation only at the Union Jack Tavern. Happy Happenings, an affiliate of Prime I Events, is bringing Lynn over to rock the Manila comedy scene.
“Lynn is super excited for her upcoming shows,” said Dilip. “Her first show is strictly stand-up comedy and her second will combine songs and story-telling. She’s gotten numerous standing ovations in various parts of the world for both acts so we expect a similar reception in Manila.”
Lynn was born in Toledo, Ohio, and lived in San Francisco for 30 years. She started comedy and cabaret at 70. Lynn got her first
big break on America’s Got Talent in Las Vegas in 2008 then won the People’s Choice award at the Branson Comedy Festival the next year. She was in the finals of Bill Word’s Funniest Female Contest in 2009 and semifinals of the San Francisco International Comedy Competition. Lynn was in the Top 100 in Britain’s Got Talent and bagged the Liberty Award at the Leicester Comedy Festival in 2015. She has left audiences in stitches from London to Edinburgh to Brighton to Melbourne to Barcelona.
It’s her first visit to the Philippines but she’s previously performed in Asia, specifically Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and Singapore. She recalled performing to a standing ovation in Bangkok. The Netherlands and Germany were other countries in her world tour.
“I’ve been doing comedy for 15 years,” she said. “It started when I told a joke in San Francisco and when everyone laughed, I decided to do it again. I make aging sound like it’s fun. In my personal life, I think I’m funnier than I am on my shows. In writing up my material, I think of something funny, play with the words until they say as much as possible in as few words
as possible then I try it out in an open mike.”
Five years ago, Lynn was on Jamie DeWolf’s show called Tourettes Without Regrets and she was featured in an amazing line-up that included pole dancers, acrobats, strippers, singers and poets. Her first one-woman show was called Farewell To The Tooth Fairy, a series of stories from her book Thoughts While Walking The Dog.
“I’m beginning to realize that my very existence and persistence is the key to all this admiration I have been getting from audiences,” said Lynn whose comedy idol is Phyllis Diller. “The one thing I want to remind myself over and over is that I’m a hustler and I work for every gig I get but I’m not an exceptional talent. I don’t want to suddenly think I’m hot stuff when I’m only an old lady having more fun with life than I ever dreamed possible after my anxiety-fraught, miserably unhappy, first half of life.”
Lynn said stand-up comedy is now in a second golden age. “The first boom started in the 1980s when stand-up comedy went mainstream, making TV and movie stars of comedians like Eddie Murphy, Robin Williams, Whoopi Goldberg, Bill Cosby and Jerry Seinfeld,” she said. “But, as is true with the economy, that boom was followed by a bust. Essentially, it was a stand-up recession as comedy clubs across the US closed during the 1990s and all but the biggest acts went dormant. Now, with the rise of the alternative comedy scene and the Internet, stand-up comedy is booming and relevant once again with podcasts, social media, YouTube, Netflix and dozens of channel/website hybrids hungry for comedians’ original content and relevancy.”
(For tickets and inquiries, call 09209717055 or 0917-5703057. Ticketnet hotline is 911-5555 and Ticketbooth hotline is 887-5131.)