What's Wrong with People?
Showtime · 2012 · 75 min
An agitated man catalogs the decline of modern social etiquette.
A man in a sharp suit is deeply bothered by the general public. Before he was selling out arenas, Sebastian Maniscalco planted his flag with a rigid set of social rules he learned from his Italian-American upbringing, contrasting them with a modern world that simply refuses to behave. He performs with the frantic exasperation of a guy who just watched a stranger finger a muffin out of a brown bag at a coffee shop and cannot let it go. His physical act is already fully formed here, pacing the stage and relying on exaggerated facial expressions to sell his disgust.
Filmed at the Margaret A. Webb Theater in Santa Ana, California, the 2012 hour captures a working comic hitting his stride before his transition to major movie roles. The premises rely on the minutiae of daily friction. He channels genuine anger over the lost etiquette of answering a doorbell, the irritation of dodging retail kiosks in the middle of the mall, and the struggle of teaching his immigrant father how to use the internet.
The set list
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Eating food out of a bag at Starbucks
Exasperated breakdown of a woman fingering a muffin out of a bag instead of asking for a plate.
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Mall kiosks and aggressive sales techniques
Complaining about carts and huts on wheels selling hand cream from Israel and eyebrow threading in the walkway.
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Ordering sandwiches at Subway
Frustration with indecisive customers who hold up the line treating sandwich toppings like adopting a puppy.
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Supermarket self-checkout lanes and baggers
Lamenting customer self-checkout machines, price checks requiring baggers with ear gauges, and feeling judged for using plastic bags.
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Having unexpected company and the doorbell
Contrasting how families welcomed drop-in visitors in the 1980s with the modern dread, ducking, and hiding when the doorbell rings.
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Teaching an immigrant father how to use the internet
Comedic exasperation over trying to explain modern technology and social media like Facebook to an older Italian father.
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Nightclubs then versus now
Comparing classic club decorum and respectful conduct to modern nightclub grinding and aggressive behavior.
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Participation trophies and special children
Mocking the modern culture of rewarding fifth place compared to old-school strict parental expectations.
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The frozen yogurt sampling craze
Bafflement at customers asking for excessive samples at Pinkberry and treating yogurt like a life-changing event.
How it plays
- Tone
- Exasperated, sarcastic, nostalgic, observational, and self-assured.
- On stage
- Exasperated, bewildered, and witheringly sarcastic observer of modern social habits, animated by expressive facial gestures and dynamic physical movement.
- Pace
- High-octane and relentless energy from the outset, moving actively around the stage with animated physical act-outs.
- About
- Modern etiquette and societal decay, Italian-American family traditions versus modern culture, Everyday customer service frustrations, Parenting and participation trophies, Modern dating and nightclub behavior
What the critics said
Widely praised by fans and reviewers for his relatable pet peeves, impeccable timing, and animated physical delivery, though some critics characterized the material as traditional, complaints-based generational humor.
In the room: Enthusiastic and highly responsive room laughing and relating to common universal pet peeves.
Backstory
Drawing heavily on his upbringing in an old-school Italian-American household with immigrant parents to highlight the absurdities and lack of decorum in contemporary modern society.
Details
- Released
- Taped
- Margaret A. Webb Theater, Santa Ana
- Runtime
- 75 min
- Where
- Showtime
- Director
- Manny Rodriguez
- Topics
- Before
- Comedy Central Presents (2008)
- After
- Why Would You Do That? (2016)
More from Sebastian Maniscalco
-
It Ain't Right
Hulu
-
Is it Me?
Netflix
-
Stay Hungry
Netflix
-
Why Would You Do That?
Showtime
-
Comedy Central Presents
Comedy Central
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