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Brick Wall Comedy

Black on Broadway

Lewis Black

HBO · 2004 · 58 min

Lewis Black yells about color-coded terror and soy milk.

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Lewis Black spent decades working theater gigs and performing short segments on The Daily Show before securing his first solo HBO hour. Filmed at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre in New York City, Black on Broadway captures the comic at the peak of his early-2000s righteous indignation, pacing the stage and shaking his finger at a post-9/11 America.\n\nRather than relying on tidy set-ups and punchlines, Black treats the performance as a pressure-valve release. He targets the George W. Bush administration’s search for weapons of mass destruction, suggesting the government should have just sent two kids to Kinko’s to fabricate a photo of a nuclear weapon on a camel rather than letting the public down by stopping their usual lies. He also directs his anger toward corporate greed, Homeland Security’s color-coded threat charts, and the absurdity of using duct tape as a counter-terrorism measure.\n\nBetween the political rants, the set detours into petty, everyday frustrations. Black delivers an extended sequence on the marketing of bottled water—which he claims is just packaged by a couple in a Pittsburgh bathtub—and the concept of soy milk, arguing that since there is no such thing as a soy titty, the drink is actually just soy juice. He also laments the isolation of New Zealand, suggesting the country push its islands closer to the rest of the world if they want to participate in global society.

The set list

6 bits

  1. Weapons of mass destruction and government dishonesty

    Satirizes the failure to find WMDs in Iraq, questioning why the government stopped lying when they could have simply sent kids to Kinko's to fabricate a photo of a camel carrying a nuclear bomb.

  2. Soy milk naming and marketing

    Observes that soy milk is an unappetizing absurdity that is actually just 'soy juice' and does not belong alongside real cow's milk.

  3. Bottled water industry

    Mocks the modern commodification of tap water, joking that bottled water is produced by a couple in Pittsburgh sitting in a bathtub.

  4. School nuclear drills

    Recalls childhood 'duck and cover' drills, ridiculing the logic of wooden school desks thwarting a nuclear blast or protecting him from an engulfing fireball.

  5. Traveling to New Zealand

    Riffs on how isolated New Zealand is after an 18-hour flight, suggesting its residents push their islands closer to the rest of the world.

  6. Chiding fans for bringing new viewers

    Opens the performance by scolding loyal fans for bringing friends along, claiming he doesn't want the added pressure of having to win over new audiences.

How it plays

Tone
Angry, dark, satirical, and incredulous.
On stage
Combustible, irascible, spittle-spewing curmudgeon driven by explosive fury and righteous indignation, stalking the stage like a panther with trademark growls and blue language.
Pace
High-energy, building momentum into shouting tirades and frantic outbursts, balanced by conversational engagement and occasionally having to stifle his own grins.
About
American politics and political parties, Iraq War and weapons of mass destruction, Corporate greed and Enron, Homeland Security color alerts, Consumer absurdities like bottled water and soy milk, Cold winter weather

What the critics said

Critics highlighted Black's masterly comic rage, sharp topical targets, and infectious physical energy, though some reviews noted his heavy reliance on profanity and bluster over nuanced knockout punchlines made him an acquired taste.

In the room: Rapturous and enthusiastic response with roars of laughter from fans receptive to his furious, yelled delivery.

Summed up from reviews, articles and listings. Sources: themoviedb.org, allmovie.com, en.wikipedia.org, rottentomatoes.com, variety.com, jewishjournal.com, newsfromme.com.

Backstory

Filmed during the aftermath of the 2003 invasion of Iraq amid public debates over nonexistent weapons of mass destruction, post-9/11 homeland security threat levels, and corporate scandals like Enron.

Details

Released
Taped
Brooks Atkinson Theater, New York
Runtime
58 min
Where
HBO
Director
Paul Miller
Topics
Before
Rules of Enragement (2003)
After
Luther Burbank Performing Arts Center Blues (2005)

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