A comedy club in Seattle canceled four comedians after the venue decided their acts “did not align with the neighborhood’s progressive values.”
It may seem like a bad joke, but Capitol Hill Comedy Bar, known for promoting voices from the queer community, had hired comedians Jim Florentine, Dave Smith, Luis Gomez and Kurt Metzger for some upcoming shows before scrapping them.
But Florentine, known for his bold and outspoken style, is among four whose shows were cancelled. He now predicts that the club will eventually close following the decision.
“We got this email that said, listen, we did some research and basically you can’t come to the club,” Florentine said. KOMO.
“There was a whole thing that we were a progressive area, and we checked with the community and their values, and my values don’t align with the other comics.”
A Seattle comedy club canceled four comics, including Jim Florentine, center, citing that their comedy was not aligned with “progressive values.”
Capitol Hill Comedy Bar, pictured, said the decision was based on concerns expressed by the community that the upcoming shows “do not align with the spirit of the neighborhood.”
The comedians were informed of the change by the club’s booker, Jes Anderson, who explained in a letter that the decision was based on concerns expressed by the community that the upcoming shows “do not align with the spirit of the neighborhood.”
The club promotes the “vibrant voices of the queer community” with a weekly “Queers to the front” open mic night.
Among his stand-up comedy, Florentine was the voice behind a mentally disabled teenage character named ‘Special Ed’ on a prank call show on Comedy Central called ‘Crank Yankers’.
Florentine describes her act as “silly and apolitical,” but believes her direct approach and willingness to address controversial topics, including transgender issues, influenced the decision.
‘I say what I think on stage, I’m nervous, I don’t kiss the audience’s ass. I’ll talk about the transgender issue,” he told the New York Post.
The comedians were informed of the change by the club’s booker, Jes Anderson, who explained in a letter that the decision was based on concerns expressed by the community that the upcoming shows “do not align with the spirit of the neighborhood.”
The neighborhood, recognized as an ‘LGBTQ+ epicenter,’ gained national attention in 2020 during protests when it was declared a ‘Capitol Autonomous Zone.’
An aerial view of a Black Lives Matter mural in Seattle, in what was initially known as the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone, which spanned several blocks around the Seattle Police Department’s eastern district.
“Taking into account the feedback and to avoid any potential negative impact on both our club and the artists involved, as well as to maintain harmony within our community, we believe the most responsible course of action is to not move forward with the shows.” , Anderson wrote in a letter to comics.
The neighborhood, recognized as an ‘LGBTQ+ epicenter,’ gained national attention in 2020 during protests when it was declared a ‘Capitol Autonomous Zone.’
Florentine expressed amusement at the idea of the club consulting with local residents before inviting comedians to perform.
‘I didn’t know you had to check with the neighborhood. “I called my friends who have comedy clubs around the country and said, ‘I’m going to go in a couple of months, you have to check out the neighborhood and see if they’re okay with me performing there,'” he joked.
He thinks the club may have reconsidered after seeing his work or listening to his non-PC podcast.
“There could have been a million things that came up where they said, ‘Hey, we don’t want this guy,'” he said. “Usually what happens is a club vets you before hiring you (and decides) we don’t want that kind of comedy; a lot of places won’t hire you and you won’t even know it.” But in this case they signed us,” Florentine said.
Florentine, center, known for his avant-garde style and for voicing a Crank Yankers character, believes his outspokenness on controversial topics led to his snub.
Florentine says he doesn’t hold a grudge against the Capitol Hill Comedy Bar (pictured), but he doesn’t think it will last much longer if it continues to operate with such restrictions.
Despite his willingness to adapt his acting when performing in more liberal venues, he believes comedy has a role to play in pushing boundaries.
“That’s why I got into comedy, to push the limits,” Florentino stressed.
“Sometimes you toe the line with something and think ‘oh, that went too far’… That’s the goal as a comic: to try to find where that line is and just follow it.”
Florentine says he has no hard feelings toward the Capitol Hill Comedy Bar, but he doesn’t think it will last much longer if it continues to operate with such restrictions.
“If that’s the way they’re going to run their business, I don’t see how they’re going to stay in business that long.”
The other comedians involved also had their own views on the situation, with Gomez speculating that local comedians might influence the decision, while Metzger criticized the club for practicing groupthink and similarly predicting its failure.