ANDERSON — Upcoming shows at the Anderson Paramount Theatre include two nights of music-based comedy: Buckets N Boards on Friday, March 15, and female comic Anita Renfroe on Saturday, March 16.
All the world’s a drum
To Gareth Sever and Matthew Levingston, all the world is a drum. They drum on everything from plastic tubs to metal ladders to each other’s heads (covered by hard hats, of course) during a performance. They create body percussion by slapping their hands against their knees or their chests. And it should come as no surprise that tap-dancing will also be part of their Friday show at the Anderson Paramount Theatre. It’s all about the beat for the men who make up Buckets N Boards, a two-man comedy percussion show.
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Sever and Levingston met 14 years ago while they were both performing with Dolly Parton’s Dixie Stampede. Sever was a comedian, and Levingston was an emcee and a trick rider. They hung out together during break times between shows for the dinner attraction.
“He taught me to drum, and I taught him to tap-dance,” Sever said. “We had fun improvising and creating rhythms.”
They realized they might be on to something, so they auditioned and were accepted as street performers at Branson’s Landing shopping and dining district, drumming on big 10-gallon plastic buckets, singing and tap-dancing.
Crowds stopped by to see what all the pounding was about, and to keep the audience’s attention, they began throwing in little jokes and comedy bits, Sever said.
The two got such a great response from their street performances that in 2010 they decided to take a leap of faith. They would leave their steady jobs and put together a theatrical show. Already in the perfect location — Branson, Missouri — the two became a featured act at Clay Cooper’s Music Express.
Since then, they have worked their way up to Dick Clark’s American Bandstand Theater, where they perform more than 40 shows a year during the summer vacation season. Throw in their reputation as one of the most-requested headliners on the Disney Cruise Line and another 30 or so tour dates, and Buckets N Boards performs around 120 shows a year.
Buckets N Boards’ Friday night show at the Anderson Paramount Theatre will include its signature bit — a country song called “If My Nose Was Running Money (I’d Blow It All on You)”.
“We sing it very seriously, then play a recorder,” Sever said, “and then a double nose recorder and a beat box.”
The show has definite family appeal, Sever said. It’s fun for the kids with a lot of pop culture references thrown in for the adults.
“We did a lot of school shows early on,” Sever said. “You get to know what gets kids cracking up.”
Buckets N Boards will perform at 7:30 p.m. Friday at the Anderson Paramount Theatre, 1124 Meridian St. Tickets are $19 and are available at theandersonparamount.org.
Estrogen-fueled musical comedy
“The Mom Song” made Anita Renfroe an overnight YouTube sensation. If you haven’t seen it, Renfroe has gathered all the momisms — things moms are constantly saying — and put those words of wisdom to the tune of “The William Tell Overture.”
The speed of the music and the speed at which the momisms spew forth as song lyrics capture perfectly the pace at which many mothers feel they live their lives. Among the momisms delivered at break-neck speed are: “Get up now,” “don’t make me come down there” and “your iPod is my iPod if you don’t listen up.”
Renfroe’s popularity can be seen in the video as she finishes the song and the hundreds of women watching from the audience leap to their feet in a standing ovation.
“The most satisfying comedy,” said the 56-year-old Renfroe, “is something people identify with.”
And people — especially women — certainly identify with Renfroe.
In Renfroe’s act — she calls it “estrogen-flavored musical comedy” — two things happen, she said.
“Women are so happy to see their worldview represented by a female comedian,” she said, “and for guys who are always trying to decode the female genome, it gives them a place to start.”
Her two-hour performances consist not only of monologues, but parody songs and original songs.
“It’s more like a variety show with just me,” she said.
Renfroe performs nationally about 70 to 80 shows a year.
As a Christian comedian, Renfroe’s experiences in front of an audience began with leading a women’s ministry in church.
“I would prattle on before or after a song,” she said. “I didn’t know it was comedy. I just thought I was talking.”
In 2009, Renfroe launched “The Mom Song” and has been performing it at concerts ever since. When Renfroe’s career took off, her three children were in elementary, middle and high school, and home became a place to gather material for the next comedy routine.
“I just hope I didn’t wreck their childhoods by trying out material at the dinner table,” Renfroe said.
By society’s standards, Renfroe has made it in the world of stand-up comedy. Her video has been viewed more than 3.8 million times; she’s filmed a sitcom pilot; she’s been interviewed by The New York Times; and she has made the round of morning talk shows.
But the standard by which she judges herself revolves around the question “Am I giving out joy most nights of my career?”
If the answer is yes, she said, “then I would say I’m wildly successful.”
Anita Renfroe performs at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the Anderson Paramount Theatre, 1124 Meridian St. Tickets range from $18 t0 $50 and are available at theandersonparamount.org.