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Promotional art for Never Been Kissed
Cover image credit: Promotional image via Comedy Dynamics

Never Been Kissed

Nicole Burch

Comedy Dynamics · 2020 · 49 min

A chronicle of bad dating and one disastrous celebrity encounter.

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Released , on Comedy Dynamics.

Nicole Burch anchors her debut set around an unusual piece of personal history: after an exhausting stretch of bad dating, she managed to secure an evening with actor Michael Vartan, the crush from her teenage years who starred in the 1999 rom-com Never Been Kissed. The date promptly collapsed into chaos.

Self-funded and filmed at the Ice House in Pasadena, California, the 49-minute performance recounts the frantic preparation leading up to the night and the mishaps that followed, delivered with Vartan’s advance blessing. Burch keeps the focus squarely on her own overthinking and self-sabotage rather than taking cheap shots at her companion.

Released by Comedy Dynamics in the fall of 2020, the set won Best Comedy Special at the Omni Cultural TV Fest.

Notable bits & set list

1 bit

  1. Going on a date with childhood celebrity crush Michael Vartan after years of unlucky dating.

    An extended narrative detailing how everything that could go wrong went wrong on the date, dismantling romantic comedy tropes in favor of disastrous comedic reality.

How it plays

Tone
Self-deprecating, humorous, and candid.
On stage
Relatable and engaging, often self-deprecating and performing at her own expense.
Pace
Narrative-driven storytelling designed to keep the audience on the edge of their seats.
About
dating culture, heartbreak, celebrity crush, expectations versus reality in romance

What the critics said

Praised as a compelling, highly relatable long-form dating anecdote showcasing Burch's storytelling abilities and comedic charisma beyond traditional one-liners.

In the room: Engaged and captivated by the serialized unfolding of the dating story.

Summed up from reviews, articles and listings. Sources: imdb.com, badtastefilms.com, comedydynamics.com, tv.apple.com, pop-culturalist.com, thepitchkc.com, archive.nytimes.com, variety.com.

Backstory

Drawn from Burch's personal experiences of heartbreak, dating struggles in her 30s, and unexpectedly meeting and going on a date with her childhood celebrity crush, Michael Vartan (the star of the 1999 romantic comedy 'Never Been Kissed').

Details

Released
Runtime
49 min
Where
Comedy Dynamics
Director
Corey Martin Craig
Topics
After
Mama Drama (2024)

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