Comedian Mike Wysocki headlines ‘Date Night’ show
Being a stand-up comedian is hard enough without distractions. Add those in, and suddenly making people laugh becomes a lot less fun.
Just ask Mike Wysocki, 48, of Brentwood, who couldn’t wait for the return of indoor shows after months of them being offlimits due to the COVID- 19 pandemic. Outdoor shows proved to be trickier than he expected, with audience members getting up mid-show to leave on their loud motorcycles or, on one occasion, doing poolside comedy with folks in the water barely paying attention.
“There are so many distractions,” Wysocki told the Post-Gazette. “Even if you’re doing OK, you can’t hear it because it’s outside. [Indoor comedy] is kind of just getting back together. ... It’s almost like starting over.”
It was a tough transition for Wysocki to go from doing shows every weekend to doing a couple a month. His first few indoor performances were mostly at noncomedy clubs like fire halls and hotel ballrooms. He’ll be back at one of his favorite venues — Pittsburgh Improv at The Waterfront — on Wednesday headlining a “Date Night Laughs” show featuring host Aarik Nesby andfellow comics Shannon Norman, Aaron Kleiber and Amanda Averell.
Tickets, $15, are available at improv.com/pittsburgh for the 8 p.m. show. Wysocki is psyched to be a part of a lineup that includes so many talented local comedians at the Improv.
“That’s where everyone wants to be,” he said. “Every comic wants to open there and eventually headline there. That’s the place.”
Wysocki grew up near Harrisburg, but he’s been in the Steel City for 20 years now. He would often watch the “Late Show With David Letterman” and was in awe of the comedians who got paid to tell jokes. So, he decided to pursue comedy as a full-time career.
He’s dabbled in other media, including writing a column for Pittsburgh City Paper and radio appearances on WDVE-FM. His comedy podcast, “The Mike Wysocki Show,” is currently on hold, as is his writing gig covering the Pirates for the former Pittsburgh Current. Those latter two endeavors might be rekindled in the near future, he said.
He has come to terms with being an elder statesman in the Pittsburgh comedy scene. The oldest comic at Wednesday’s Improv show, Wysocki said he’s noticed a difference between older and younger stand-ups. The new generation draws more laughs from telling personal stories than from setting up jokes and landing punchlines, he said.
“After a while you start to be the old guy, and that’s a weird transition. You’re looking up to people, and suddenly they’re asking you for advice. It just goes quick.”
Wysocki said he was feeling a little rusty the first time he stepped on stage after six months of shutdowns.
At this point, every comedian has a COVID-19-related joke or two in their arsenal, he said, “but you can’t do 30 minutes about it” without
risking losing audience members there for escapism. He’s also noticed that those watching his shows seem more attentive than they did pre-pandemic, which he chalks up to how much they missed live entertainment.
Along with his fellow comics, Wysocki is ready to spread laughter Wednesday night in a familiar setting.
“It’s going to be cool to be indoors at a legit place. It’s a good lineup, so I’m looking forward to it.”
Now headlining himself, Wysocki has also opened for big names like Tommy Chong, Judah Friedlander and Swissvale native Billy Gardell. In 2012, he opened for Norm Macdonald, a “Saturday Night Live” veteran and longtime stand-up who died of cancer last month.
Before performing together, Macdonald and Wysocki hung out in the Strip District, got breakfast at DeLuca’s Diner, walked around Wholey’s Fish Market and watched golf on TV at Leaf & Bean. He remembered that Macdonald’s hotel room overlooked the notquitedemolished Civic Arena, prompting Macdonald to quip, “That was the home of the great Penguin goaltender Les Binkley.”
“He was exactly how you wanted him to be,” Wysocki said. “It was the same thing as being on stage.”