Blogologues Proves That the Internet and Live Theatre Can Live in Harmony

By Ross Luippold

Blogologues, the brainchild of actor/curators Allison Goldberg and Jen Jamula, creatively showcases Internet writing, which they rightfully assert is some of the most clever and thoughtful work currently being produced.

The best Internet writing establishes a defined relationship between the writer and the reader, either implicitly or explicitly. And over the course of an hour or so, Blogologues does the same thing between the actors and the audience — with the added challenge of breathing life into words intended to be read on a screen.

The five charming actors who make up the cast each take on roles as monologists, Greek chorus members, stage pieces and any other role informed by the pieces adapted. The selection of Internet writing that the Blogologues players perform ranges from pithy tweets to confessional blogs to McSweeney’s humor essays, and each is performed with gusto and respect that attempts to stay true to the original.

The idea of going to a live performance of the material that I spend my working day sifting through made me feel how a brewery worker must feel at happy hour: Sure, this stuff is engineered to make people feel fantastic, but enough’s enough.

Two or three pints in, that guy remembers that beer is, indeed, amazingly delicious. And similarly, Blogologues enforces the idea that the reason homemade online content is undeniably intoxicating is that its very nature commands attention and hopefully, communication. Blogologues finds the humanity in something that could easily be disposable.

The Internet is no longer a secret club (thank goodness), but Blogologues is the kind of show that helps us digest what we’re truly learning — and feeling — when we wade into its offerings.

No, that's not photoshopped, people. Randi Zuckerberg wants to see Blogologues.

Click here for more information about the show, and click here to buy your tickets today! 

“Blogologues finds the humanity in something that could easily be disposable, and in doing so, reminds us that examples of Internet creativity are hardly texts to discard as worthy for adaptation.” – Huffington Post Comedy 

“The best thing since the World Wide Web.” — Lauren Leto, co-founder, Banters & Texts From Last Night

“Intricately staged, energetically performed and cannily curated, the audience can’t help but become invested because the players are so damn committed.” — Rachel Sklar, Change the Ratio

“The short stories and one-line tweets are performed expertly, with perfect comic timing and dedication… Lively Productions is taking performance to the next level; Blogologues combines live theater and ever-popular websites like Twitter, Texts from Last Night, various blogs and other Internet trends. The actors perform these ‘net novellas verbatim, making for a very honest and hilarious night at the theater.” — Show Business Weekly

“The concept is simple, really. Posts, tweets, and blog entries performed verbatim from the internet. But the genius recontextualization of these humorous posts increases their hilarity!”– Sophia Fraioli and Lauren Kaelin, co-founders, When Parents Text

“And, although the original posts may have been serious, we promise the hour long JK-ing show will have you LOLing or ROFLing instead of just chuckling anonymously behind your computer.” — Refinery29

“Blogologues: Younger than Springtime, now at the Players Theatre, is a surprisingly carefree romp through the world of the Internet.” — Theatermania

From the creator of Lesbians Who Look Like Justin Bieber and EveryoneIsGay.com.

“Blogologues is one of those shows where, no matter if you would rather seek out indie theater or troll Reddit, you will find at least one piece that speaks to you. The cast is just as smart and talented as the bloggers who created this content, and together they make a truly unique piece of interactive theater.” — Crushable

“Now that I’ve seen Blogologues current production, Younger Than Springtime, they have my nomination for a MacArthur Genius Grant.  I realize that my endorsement will probably get them evicted from their homes, a pair of plantar warts, and a Darwin Award instead.” — blogger, Lame Adventures

“It’s more than just hilarious… it’s really GREAT work. It is, frankly, what Saturday Night Live was like in the 70′s; biting social satire delivered with energy and polish. Yes, it made me laugh out loud. Blogologues makes me believe that there is, in fact, a future for sketch comedy.” — Scotty Watson, comedian, Second City Toronto

“You simply must see it. You simply must.” — blogger, The Miss O’Show

“Taking funny online content and presenting it to an audience works because it takes the internet from a solitary place to a social place…It also helps to have a talented, energetic cast.” — blogger, Hot Femme in the City

“I love you, Blogologues.” — The Bloggess

Blogologues: Younger Than Springtime runs weekends through May 5th. For a full list of press, please visit our press page.

16 SHOWS! * April 13th – May 5th*
8 PM and 10 PM  (details below!)

OvationTix or call 866-811-4111.  Tickets are $18 + a free drink!

the internet performed

In our weird new world where tech CEOS are high-rolling celebrities and the honey badger just don’t give a sh**, BLOGOLOGUES: YOUNGER THAN SPRINGTIME will tackle the surest signs of the season: spring fever, fertility, The Hunger Games, taxes and more! All material is performed verbatim from the internet.  Brand new material from Jezebel each week!

• Directed by David Hilder
• Stage Manager: Becca Pickett
• Assistant Stage Manager: Casey Malone
• Lighting Design: Jimmy Lawlor
• Graphic Design: Dave Thomas Brown
• Sound Design: Matthew Cox

Featuring Dave Thomas Brown, Matthew Cox, Allison Goldberg*, Jen Jamula*, and Wendy Joy.

Click the calendar for dates and times:

Blog posts from Lindy West (Jezebel), Amanda Miller (Brilliant Sulk), Dufmanno (Dufmanno’s Blog),     Meg (2 Birds 1 Blog), David Houlub (McSweeney’s), Jessica Schnall (Alone With Cats), Julia (Full Credit For Being Alive), Daniel O’Brien (Cracked), Laurenne Sala (Humans Are Funny), and more. Featuring content from Twitter, Siri, Craigslist, Texts From Last Night, Damn You Autocorrect, When Parents Text, and Overheard In New York!

  *Actors perform courtesy of AEA.  Blogologues is a trademark of Lively Productions, Inc.

GET TIX HERE!

Mosey over to The Salon at Hudson Terrace for outrageous fun THIS FRIDAY, March 23rd at 9:30 pm.  We will ply you with drinks, live music, and (you guessed it!) blogologues.  We are raising funds and building the excitement for our upcoming spring run of… Blogologues!

For only $18 ($25 at the door!), you can mingle, dance, place a bid at our silent auction, and drown your sorrows at the cash bar. Or your joys. Whatever. Enjoy the musical stylings of:

Matty Fasano     *     Reserved for Rondee     *     DJ Azman

…as well as performances by your very own Livelies (Dave Thomas Brown, Matt Cox, Allison Goldberg, Jen Jamula, and Wendy Joy) as they take you back to Blogologues’ greatest hits.  We’ll keep going til the bar runs dry.

All proceeds benefit Lively Productions, a registered 501(c)(3) organization.

You’ve seen them on Funny or Die, at the UCB, on 30 Rock, The Soup, across comedy festivals, and in your snuggliest of dreams. Are some of them Canadian? Perhaps. You’ll have to come to find oot!

Please join us for the second-annual #CTRComedy show at the CNN Grill at SXSW! Change The Ratio, along with Funny or Die, the Upright Citizens Brigade, College Humor, Blumberg Capital, Reboot & Votizen invite you to:

THIS IS A COMEDY SHOW

starring

• Lizzy Cooperman
• Susan Burke
• Emily Maya Mills
• Heather Gold
• JC Coccoli
• Marina Cockenberg
• Katie Crown
• Brooke Van Poppelen

Hosted by “Blogologues” creators

Allison Goldberg & Jen Jamula

TONIGHT: 3/12/12 at 6:30pm, Beer Garden at CNN Grill (E. 3rd and San Jacinto, Austin, TX)

But take heart.  Now you have the cozy glow of our Tumblr page to keep you warm at night.  So get your hot chocolate, put on some smooooooth jazz, and relax, because your mind…is about to get blown.  In a good way.  But also a good, clean fun way.  This is…

BLOGOLOGUES ON TUMBLR

Smarttix.com or call 212-868-4444.

Blog posts as monologues. And other wacky material that probably shouldn’t be read out loud. 

Tickets are $15 and include a beer!
Come early for a drink before the show! Doors open at 7:00 and 9:00.

This month, Blogologues is here to help you find your soul mate. Join us, and you will learn the do’s and don’ts of dating, witness the end of a few meaningful relationships, experience the blossoming of new ones (perhaps with strippers), and, of course…Zombies.

We think it’ll be fun. So, what we’re getting at is…will you go out with us?

Featuring a raffle brought to you by PplLikeMe!

• Directed by David Hilder
• Stage Manager: Courtney Ferrell
• Lighting Design: Jimmy Lawlor
• Graphic Design: Dave Thomas Brown

Cast: Andrea Biggs*, Matthew Cox, Danny Gardner*, Allison Goldberg*, Jen Jamula*

Blog posts from Colin Nissan and Charlotte Hamilton (McSweeney’s), Laurenne Sala (Humans Are Funny), Lily O (WTF Is Up With My Love Life), Jessica Schnall (Alone With Cats), JD (JD’s Man Stories), Chiara Atik (HowAboutWe) … Content from Twitter, Craigslist, Texts From Last Night, Damn You Autocorrect, When Parents Text, F My Life, Overheard In New York and Overheard in the Office!

This is our last show in our series at UNDER St. Marks!  Please join us!

Smarttix.com or call 212-868-4444.

Blog posts as monologues. And other wacky material that probably shouldn’t be read out loud. 

Tickets are $15 and include a beer!
Come early for a drink before the show! Doors open at 7:00 and 9:00.

• Directed by Harry Poster
• Stage Manager: Jim Armstrong
• Asst. Stage Manager: Drew Perrin
• Lighting Design: Jimmy Lawlor
• Graphic Design: Alex Kahn

Cast: Andrew Ash*, Dave Thomas Brown, Allison Goldberg*, Jen Jamula*, Julienne Jones, Adam Levinthal*

Blog posts from Michael Ian Black (McSweeney’s), Elly (BugginWord), Edith Zimmerman (The Hairpin), Jim Sutherland (My Star Collector Car), Cookies.com, and more…

And get excited for…

Content from Craigslist, Texts From Last Night, Twitter, Damn You Autocorrect, When Parents Text, Overheard In New York, and…

RICK PERRY PARODIES!   

Conceived by Allison Goldberg and Jen Jamula
Produced in association with Horse Trade Theater Group
Under St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place)
Monday, November 28th
7:30 and 9:30 PM 
For information on the full series, please visit the Blogologues page.

Conceived by Allison Goldberg and Jen Jamula
Produced in association with Horse Trade Theater Group
Under St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place)
Monday, October 24th
7:00 and 9:00 PM 
For information on the full series, please visit the Blogologues page.

Smarttix.com or call 212-868-4444.

Blog posts as monologues. And other wacky material that probably shouldn’t be read out loud. 

Tickets are $15 and include a beer!
Come early for a drink before the show! Doors open at 6:30 and 8:30.

Directed by: David Hilder
Stage Manager: Jim Armstrong
Lighting Design: Nick Solyom            
Projection Design: David Booher  

Cast: Andrea Biggs*, Matthew Cox, Samuel T. Gaines*, Allison Goldberg*, Jen Jamula*

Blog posts from Girl on the Contrary, Helen Killer (Regretsy), Wendy Molyneux (McSweeney’s), Mike Nelson (Riff Trax), Colin Nissan (McSweeney’s), Helen A. S. Popkin (Technolog on MSNBC), Lord Voldemort (LV7 Thinks), Fred & Ginger (The Awkward Dance), Georgia Farm Woman (Life on a Southern Farm), and Gladstone (Cracked.com).

And, as always, get excited for…

Content from Texts From Last Night, Twitter, Damn You Autocorrect, Overheard in New York, and more…