The Ready For Prime Time Players
Those bedroom googly eyes. That flawless metallic skin. The clumsy catwalk. Who could resist the charms of "Robot Nightmares'" leading mandroid? His creators -- Staten Island's sketch comedy troupe A Dan Amongst Dans -- are hoping very few. Robot makes his national TV debut Sunday on the CW's second episode of "Online Nation," a program that scours the Web for the most bizarre and original Joe Blow-generated videos online. "Most of our stuff is pretty dark. The outcome is usually bleak and people seem to identify with that," says Chris Sorrentino, 28, of Great Kills, by day a hospital courier waiting on his first indie comic to be published. "There's nothing funnier than seeing someone else's life go downhill and just laughing at it." Much like S.I.'s The Tenderloins, the 20-something Dans create wacky, clever comedic shorts for the Internet, harnessing the forum's instant-gratification and easy-to-share powers. The group posts its work on sites such as MySpace.com, YouTube.com, DailyMotion.com, and its own site, adanamongstdans.com. Together since 2003, the original A Dan Amongst Dans crew is Sorrentino, John Szeluga and Bryan McGuckin. Newcomer Damien Lucchese mostly handles the technical end. The quirky quartet almost always pairs public screenings of their more than 40 videos with live, audience-interactive variety shows, usually dubbed "The Petting Zoo." The Dans do it again Sunday as they host "The Petting Zoo #9" at 7 p.m. in The Cup coffeehouse, Stapleton, to coincide with the 7:30 p.m. TV airing of "Robot Nightmare, Episode 3." Admission is free. "The Robot Nightmares" series consists of 45-second to 6-minute shorts about an awkward android. The 6-foot-8-inch Lucchese fills his spray-painted silver cardboard-box shoes. Laundry machine tubing and plastic googly eyes attached to his boxhead complete the look. "When I was 4 and my mom asked me what I wanted to be, I said, 'I want to be a robot,'" jokes Lucchese, a 22-year-old intern coordinator at Marvel Comics. "And now my dream has come true." Plotlines revolve around everything from a beloved beagle mix with an attitude problem to a visiting vampire. "It's funny to us for a robot to be afraid of a monster that just goes after human blood," says Szeluga, 27, also a stand-up comic, who rooms with Lucchese in Westerleigh. The guys, all children of the '80s, say their robot was inspired, in part, by other famous autobots with human emotions. Think "Star Wars," "Short Circuit" and Data from "Star Trek." "There's certain common themes that come up. I think failure is kind of a big thing," says Szeluga, by day a video techie at CSI and photographer's assistant. "We have a lot of ideas and characters that kind of rise and fall." In an episode called "Passion (cut scene)" -- a parody of Mel Gibson's "Passion of the Christ" -- Jesus (McGuckin) accidentally wacks his Roman guards in the head with his cross. And in classic "Benny Hill" style, the guards and a bikini-clad babe chase after Jesus. The live shows are just as absurd. Onscreen oddballs typically pop up in the audience for extended live bits. Give Sorrentino a ratty cardigan and a bad mustache, and he bears a striking resemblance to the titular "Mr. Belvedere" (the late Christopher Hewett) of the late '80s. Other times, the Dans create fake movie trailers. "Fifty percent is entertaining the audience and 50 percent is abusing them for our own benefit," says Sorrentino, insisting audiences enjoy the abuse. In addition to a slew of Cup coffeehouse gigs, A Dan Amongst Dans has earned fans via live shows and screenings at Pete's Candy Store in Brooklyn, Manhattan's McGee Pub & Restaurants, Anthology Film Archives, and S.I.'s Karl's Klipper and the College of Staten Island. Because at least one of the Dans has always worked there, the comics have been able to make their shorts on dirt cheap budgets, using the school's film lab. "A 'Robot Nightmares' cost $50, the access and a case of beer," says McGuckin, 27, of Port Richmond, an off-Broadway prop master, who names "sleeping" as one of his passions. No doubt, as much as they believe in their own work, the Dans, each of whom nurtures individual artistic pursuits, say they were kind of surprised the new CW network picked up "Robot Nightmares." Depending on how their Internet and TV popularity evolves, they'll give more consideration to a college tour. "This validates our films are funny," says Sorrentino, who head writes with Szeluga. "I'm just hoping it sticks in people's heads and they try to find out what it's about online." Contact AWE senior writer Jodi Lee Reifer at reifer@siadvance.com. S.I. sketch comedy troupe A Dan Amongst Dans jumps from the online world to the boob tube this weekend when "Robot Nightmares" airs as part of the CW network's new "Online Nation" at 7:30 p.m. Simultaneously, the Dans host "The Petting Zoo #9" at The Cup coffeehouse, 388 Van Duzer St., Stapleton. The all-ages variety show features live bits by the Dans, guest comics Bob Bell and Shane Webb and acoustic rock by The John. Admission: Free. For a buck, get glam and pose with Robot. [main page] [news] [media] [myspace] [bios/contact] [merch] [links] ©2008 A Dan Amongst Dans |
