Jokes, food on tap all for a good cause at comedy night
In preparing jokes for her live performances, Watertown comedian Carolyn Plummer draws on a list she keeps of strange, real-life encounters she has had.
“If something silly happens to me in life, I put it away in my head and I go, ‘That’s gonna be a bit,’ ” Plummer said in an interview. “Strangers always talk to me at the grocery store and stuff, so sometimes I get material from that. Just real life.”
Some of these wacky interactions will come to life at Tuesday night’s 11th Annual Globe Santa Comedy Night, where she will join eight other comedians for a stand-up showcase at Giggles Comedy Club in Saugus.
Comedian Dave Russo, of Malden, will host the benefit show, while audience members munch on pizza donated by Prince Pizzeria. Russo and Plummer will be joined by comics Lenny Clarke, Anthony Scibelli, Christine Hurley, Will Noonan, Artie Januario, Mark Riley, and Paul Gilligan
Not one of them accepts a penny for the show, Russo said, adding that Giggles owner Mike Clarke has worked with him since the comedy night’s inception to produce successful shows .“A lot of us comedians, we’re like big kids,” Russo said, explaining that it’s a no-brainer for him to do the show to ensure local children who are less fortunate have a memorable holiday.
“Can you imagine — oh my God, I get chills — that some kid’s going to smile on Christmas because he has a gift,” Russo continued. “It’s going to make this kid’s freaking day. It is the most unbelievably coolest thing that we get to do with Giggles and all my fellow comedians.”
In a recent phone interview, Riley thought for a moment about the jokes he might tell on stage Tuesday evening. He finds lots of rich material to mine from his former career refereeing professional hockey.
The Boston native said he’s looking forward to performing with friends in the local comedy scene, which is tight-knit.
“Boston comedy, it’s grown bigger now, but everyone kind of knows everyone,” Riley said. “There’s honestly no real people you don’t like. It’s odd in that usually there’s always one, but in the circles we run in, it’s pretty cool — you get to work with your friends.”
Scibelli, a founding member of the Globe Santa comedy show, said each year’s audience has been “warm and accepting.” He is enthralled with the tradition of the show and expects a spirited group of guests on Tuesday, he said.
“‘I’ve been there since the first show, and by the second or third one, it already felt like an institution,” Scibelli said. “It just felt like we had been doing it forever.”
Globe Santa Comedy Night takes place at Giggles Comedy Club inside Prince Pizzeria in Saugus from 7:30 to 11 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 12. Tickets are
$35 and are sold online at globesantacomedynight2023.splashthat.com. Doors open at 6 p.m.
For 68 years Globe Santa, a program of the Boston Globe Foundation, has provided gifts to children in need at holiday time. Please consider giving by phone, mail, or online at globesanta.org