Bloglander

Three pros are performing this Saturday at the Bing Crosby Theatre as part of the Bada Bing Comedy Series. The show is at 8 pm, and tickets are $15. Let’s take a look at the lineup.

Dwight Slade began his career in Portland in the 1980s opening for the likes of Jay Leno, Jerry Seinfeld and Dave Chappelle. He’s a classic does-this-ever-happen-to-you-comedian. His website calls him “part man; part ageless boy.” That’s accurate, but he’ll be the true seasoned veteran on stage this Saturday.

Kane Holloway is young. He makes YouTube videos about being poor. He’s from Seattle and is a regular at Tacoma Comedy Club. His jokes are narrative-based, and you can be sure he’ll throw in a lot of misdirection.

Kelsey Cook’s website refers to her as a “young up-and-coming comedian,” which is true. However, the WSU grad might be the one to really crack up the audience on Saturday. Her YouTube videos have garnered special attention, especially her response to sorority girl Rebecca Martinson’s hate-filled email. Cook wields an edgy style, talking about white trash girls on Facebook, homeless people and herpes. I asked her a few questions ahead of her arrival in Spokane…

How do your Spokane roots influence your comedy?

I joke that one of my favorite hobbies is following white trash people on Facebook, and that I'm Facebook friends with a lot of white trash because I'm from the meth capital of the world: Spokane! I give this city a hard time, but I don't think Spokanites take offense to it because I'm one of their own.

What has been your proudest moment as a comic so far?

When one of my YouTube videos was featured in the front-page article on Yahoo! There was a crazy sorority girl in the news recently named Rebecca Martinson who received national attention after writing a horrifying email to her sorority sisters, and I made a parody video of her. When Yahoo featured the video as part of their article, my inbox got flooded with new subscribers and fan mail. It was a pretty incredible feeling as a performer to get that kind of recognition and see the words "stand up comedian Kelsey Cook" in a Yahoo article!

Why do you do comedy?

I do comedy because, to me, the greatest feeling in the world is making people laugh. Whether it's your family at the dinner table, a stranger, or a huge crowd of people, you feel on top of the world. I'm also a total people-pleaser, so doing comedy satisfies two impulses of mine: one, to make other people happy, and two, to feel connected with others through our senses of humor. The rush of walking on stage and getting 300 people to be on board with you and your point of view is unlike anything else I've ever experienced. It's incredibly addicting. I don't feel like I have any vices like drugs or alcohol, but if I got cut off from my supply of adrenaline from the stage, it would be a matter of days before I became a crazy pigeon lady on the streets.