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In an empty comedy theater, Mack Lee is strutting around in a diaper. The local comedian moves toward a camera, sipping from a baby bottle filled with champagne. An unlit cigarette rests on Lee’s bottom lip.
It’s 10 weeks until the next installment of Punchlines & Piledrivers, and Lee, who performs as an infantile character dubbed Bad Baby, needs to cut a promo for the pro-wrestling-inspired improv comedy show before an upcoming battle in October.
The brainchild of Ally Ward, a local stand-up comic and lifelong pro wrestling enthusiast, Punchlines & Piledrivers embraces what Ward calls the “absurdity” of wrestling and pairs it with improvised comedy.
The result? Unserious characters standing in a mock “ring” hurling jabs at each other while Ward emcees. The participants don’t actually wrestle; they are comedians, not athletes. Instead, the comics go one-on-one, calling out their opponents’ character flaws, while trying to win over judges, and charm the audience enough to advance to the next round.
The live show just might be the most Portland thing to hit the stage in years—a weird, low-brow production that is often as endearing as it is cringey.
Staying true to theme, the championship comes with a hefty, customized pro-wrestling-style belt.
Not every comic who participates is familiar with the theatrics and machismo of pro wrestling, but most have at least a cursory grasp. That’s where Ward comes in, helping with character development and imparting just enough knowledge about the machinations of a traditional wrestling match to make the show’s mash-up format work.
“I think everybody naturally understands that wrestling isn’t a high level art. It’s just sort of campy,” Ward says. “It is really basic storytelling sometimes.”
Some characters are built on parody. Others might come with a back story. For the most part, the character portrayal is the comedic element.
The cheeky format of Punchlines is a departure from the traditional stand-up routine most comedians are accustomed to. Improvised comedy is a challenge on its own, but throw in costumes and characters, and it ups the ante.
“I get bored easily, so this show is so great for me. As a comedian I definitely lean toward character work,” Lee says, noting Bad Baby is inspired by the ridiculousness of a brash, mafia-inspired archetype—as a toddler.
“This is my character, I’m a Sopranos baby,” Lee adds. “I get to be a freak. I get to wear a diaper.”
To attain the championship in October, Lee will need to win each round, before facing off against the current Punchlines & Pile Drivers World Champion, Amir Kat, AKA Mr. Roberts.
The reigning champ and current belt holder, Kat won over the audience at the last Punchlines show in April as Mr. Roberts—a persona derived from the Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood children’s TV show.
“The quirk with Mr. Roberts is that he’s a little more morally updated; morally ambiguous,” Kat says. I want to be unsettling, a little. That’s part of the character.”
The comedian borrows from the signature wardrobe styling of Mister Rogers, layering sweaters over sweaters. He also sports a whimsical mustache he calls an ode to the Iron Sheik—an Iranian-American pro wrestler who rose to fame in the 1980s.
“I’ve been a fan of pro wrestling ever since I was little, and I love the amped up characters,” Kat says, recalling what it meant to him to see the Iron Sheik as a mainstay character on TV, yelling in Farsi.
With Punchlines, the local comedian gets to embrace a childhood nostalgia while also flexing a new comedic muscle.
The live shows can be rough around the edges. Most of it is improvised, spur of the moment—meaning that, unlike pro wrestling, none of it is scripted. Comics in foppish costumes, at times, stumble to think of a quippy comeback.
For some in the audience, the unpolished, outlandish format is what draws them in. Thanks to a loyal local indie wrestling scene, Punchlines has been able to attract wrestling fans who know how to heckle and dial up the antics.
Is Stepdad Bill a good guy, AKA a babyface, or a heel (villain)? Even the performers don’t always know.
“What I found was the audience determines who’s the good guy and the bad guy,” Ward says. “Ultimately, I’m not telling [the contestants] which way to lean. Just present your character, and the audience will decide whether they like you or not.”
Ward is gearing up for the fourth Punchlines comedy showcase. She says the motivation for the concept was always to combine two distinct, yet not entirely dissimilar mediums. “There’s a huge passion for alternative comedy here and a huge passion for independent wrestling,” she notes. “I think the goal would be to create fans of comedy and wrestling and show them the connection of how they’re relevant.”
Punchlines & Piledrivers smashes up Curious Comedy Annex, 5225 NE MLK, Fri Oct 24, 7:30 pm, $12-15 and $5 to stream, tickets and info at curiouscomedy.org
