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A few months back, Felicia Madison, the talent booker and new talent director at West Side Comedy Club, was surprised to learn that, according to a New York Times article that she had just come across, loneliness kills more people than drugs, alcohol or tobacco.
Living in New York, a city where many people report feeling alone, and working at a comedy club, where laughter is basically a currency, Madison decided to try and change things for the better by helping people out of isolation.
“Since laughter is loneliness’ alter ego, what a great antidote it would be to bring [people] together,” she says. “Many of our patrons already come alone to our comedy shows and they not only enjoy themselves but often come back. Not everyone has the strength and courage to go alone, though, so I thought that if it was a comedy show where everyone came alone it would make it easier.”
Enter “A-Lone Comedy Show” at West Side Comedy Club, scheduled to debut on October 30, with a second iteration set for November 8, which is National Loneliness Awareness Day, and the hopes to continue as a regular series in the future.
Although not marketed as a singles event, Madison acknowledges the potential that her creation has to bring people together both romantically and not.
“I hope [attendees] feel less alone when seeing others come solo to the show and help ease the pain that comes with loneliness,” she says. “Who knows… Maybe a couple will meet. New friendships will form. At the very least, I know that for an hour and a half, these people will laugh together, smile together and feel less alone together!”
Selected comedians will, of course, dissect the concept of solitude and all that comes with it on stage.
That being said, Madison is careful to note that she’s specifically looking for a diverse group of folks to lead the night in order to appeal to the vast variety of people who will probably be in attendance.
“I will be trying to select at least one comedian a show whom I know deals with loneliness, social awkwardness or depression,” she explains. “I don’t want the material to dwell on it too much, though, and make the audience feel awkward or like this is group therapy. I feel like laughter alone is good enough medicine.”
To drive her point home even further, the talent booker has decided to donate proceeds from all the shows that she'll end up mounting for the series to a charity that deals with loneliness.
As for the global event that made loneliness a real issue all across the globe, the pandemic, Madison is happy to announce that the local comedy scene is actually thriving.
"There was a rush of people just wanting to go out and have fun as binge-watching over the pandemic left not much to catch on television anymore while movies and Broadway were slow to start, leaving less entertainment options available to New Yorkers," she says. "Comedy clubs filled that void."
Hopefully, "A-Lone Comedy Show" will do just that as well.
Purchase tickets for the show right here.