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“just checked out that new variety shac road trip video, very
funny, I watched it on the roof of a hotel across a satellite uplink from
Tyre, Lebanon where i am at the moment covering the war for NBC news. Just
thought youd get a kick from that, Me and 5 lebanese refugees watching Road
trip on my dell.”
“Hi Variety Shac girls, Really love your movies and want to know if
you have a NYE show lined up or something. My wife and I and a bunch of
friends are meeting in NY for New Year's and want something great to do,
and I'm guessing if you guys are up to something, it would be great. This
is an odd email, out of the blue, but we are FUNNY as hell and love to laugh.
Hope we get to see you live sometime.”
“Hi wanted to let you know that my husband & I LOVED your short!!
It is Fantastic! Have a great holiday season and Happy New Year!”
“Please add me to your mailing list. Love your blouses.”
“I just sat and watched every single one of your “shorts”
on your website. I was worried, what if I don’t think these are funny-
I was laughing so hard I was crying. Well, now I am addicted and need you
to make more please. I must come in and see you perform!”
Subject: hooray for y'all
“HOORAY!”
“I've been working at Lucky magazine. What I want to know
is, how did
you get into my office and film with no one noticing???”
“dude i just got back from a rough job in spain and this makes me
laugh. hope to see you soon. by the way i love that gossamer blouse.”
“ok extremely retarded and extremely funny = extremely enjoyable!”
“another great show last night i'm so happy to be in nyc
right now we're going through a cultural renaissance and you guys are making
a big contribution to that one day, i'll be able to tell my punk grandkids
‘i was there’ and now i have the t-shirt to prove it (green)
“my baptist minister friend and his 13 yr old daughter wanted me to
tell you that they really enjoyed your filthy show. Xoxoxoxo”
“Hello! I really enjoy your website and the short films. If I were
in New York, I'd definitely come check out the live show. Anyway, the shorts
inspired me to write up a script of my own and I want to go about filming
it. I was wondering what kind of equipment you guys were using. I'd just
be doing it with a few friends in my apartment here in Chicagoland. Any
nudges in the right direction would be helpful. Thanks!”
“Your comedy shorts were edgy, hip and hilarious, at once narcissistic
and self-unconscious. Interesting and hard to describe.”
“just so you know, variety shac is why i am alive. i am thinking
of tattooing your names on my chest.”
“Your doing some hilarious shit! The 3414 sketch was classic......"Boycott!".
I need to get my ass out to NY again to see your group perform.”
“Very polished, hilarious stuff (elegant even).”
“The videos are great -- realism to support the absurdity.”
“A regular on the VH1 talking-head rotisserie, Chelsea Peretti is
a comedian whose humor hits tart and dry. For the monthly Variety Shac,
Peretti has teamed up with fellow comics Andrea Rosen (of Comedy Central’s
dearly departed Stella) and the soft-spoken Heather Lawless, along with
frequent David Cross opener Shonali Bhowmik, who sings songs planted in
Indie-rock. The end product is a mash-up of music, comedy, and film that
attracts great guest stand-ups and shakes out more laughs than anything
else. For evidence, check out the short films at varietyshac.com especially
“Slumber Party,” a goofy, absurdist take on the girly pastime.
–THE ONION, VOL 42, NUM 30”
“So, my cousin (who ran into Andrea in the grocery store)
made me watch all your sketches like eight times, and then I made my friends
watch them like eight times, and now I'm wondering if you want to come to
my brother's apartment and see me and two other dudes play Replacements/Police/Talking
Heads/Zeppelin songs. And Pixies. And Prince, but only Little Red Corvette,
and only if shit gets really out of hand. Shonali, I read somewhere that
you like those bands, and they just happen to be what we play, so, you know.
I mean, we'll butcher them, but it'll be funny.”
“i like shac, i think i get it now. 4 girls + cuteness +
the funny= happy me
thanks for the funny.”
“Chelsea Peretti, Heather Lawless, Andrea Rosen, and Shonali
Bhowmik, the four women behind the monthly Tuesday-night Variety Shac at
Galapagos in Williamsburg, use it as an opportunity to put up material that
wouldn’t fit on a strict stand-up bill. ‘There’s a great
blank-slate feel to the back room that allows our show to be whatever it
wants to be,’ Peretti says of their eclectic mix of music, short films
and monologues. The venue’s booker, Travis Chamberlain agrees. “They
have very distinctive voices and aren’t afraid to take risks,’
he says. I appreciate their punk-rock audacity.” —TIME OUT NEW
YORK, STUDENT GUIDE 2005
"Four women having a potluck. Office workers trying to meet a deadline.
A bake sale, a book club, a visit to the local bodega, and a road
trip. These may not sound like anything that would make you spit out
your drink from laughter, but that's the genius behind Variety Shac, a
monthly comedy show performed by Shonali Bhowmik, Heather Lawless,
Andrea Rosen, and Chelsea Peretti (whose first initials give the Shac
its name). The interplay between the four wacky comics is perfect,
with deadpan Peretti explaining why the two-liter soda she's brought
to the potluck is all for her or Rosen trying to make the perfect sign
to advertise their bake sale. These unscripted shorts allow each
woman's unique take on their various outings to shine through,
highlighting the ridiculousness of these everyday situations. You can
catch them live at their monthly show or online, where they present
videos like Workout, where the funny ladies sweat it out to a Jane
Fonda classic." -- VILLAGE VOICE, BEST OF NYC, 2006 (Rachel Kramer
Bussel)
http://www.villagevoice.com/bestof/2006/category/arts/262
"So why exactly should you care about Shonali Bhowmik, Heather
Lawless, Chelsea Peretti, and Andrea Rosen? Well, for starters, their
home movies are way funnier than yours. Filmed throughout New York
City with friends from the local alt-comedy scene, the Shac's
hilarious shorts can be seen either on the troupe's website or when
they premiere them once a month in Brooklyn, at their increasingly
popular variety show. The ladies also maintain rather busy schedules
outside of the group..."
Alternative Press Magazine's Comedy Special Issue, Dec 2006
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Photo
by Ali Smith |
