St. Louis Magazine – July 2019

ĒĔ stlmag.com July 2019 Photography courtesy of Yale Hollander


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Yale Hollander’s mission:

Bring indie shows to the ’burbs.

BY AMANDA WOYTUS

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 I

N THE CITY, clubs and bars such as The

Crack Fox, downtown on Olive Street; the

Heavy Anchor, in Bevo; and the Improv

Shop, The Monocle, and Handlebar, near

the Grove, offer local independent comedy. Clubs in

the county? Less numerous, but there are ones like

Helium, The Funny Bone, and The Laugh Lounge,

which attract big names. “And that’s great,” begins

local comedian Yale Hollander. “But for people

who don’t necessarily want to plunk down $25 plus

a two-drink minimum, there are a lot of experi-

enced local comics...but most of the shows are at

clubs and bars in the city.” It’s a problem, he says,

for people in the county, especially West County,

who’d like to take in a local show closer to home.

“Trying for a couple of years to get some of my

West County friends and family to come out to

these shows I’ve been running or performing on,

everybody says, ‘Hey, it’s on a Thursday night at

9:30. I’m not leaving Creve Coeur,’” he says.

Hollander—who hosts Jokes & Spokes at the Bike

Stop Café in Chesterfield and produces podcasts

with comedian Chris Cyr on Impolite Company—is

on a mission to inject more local comedy into the

county scene and other areas he sees as under-

served. The area he wanted to tackle: Clayton. When

he found the Kingside Diner, he knew he was onto

something. Enter his new monthly gig, the Clayton

Comedy Series at Kingside After Dark.

Each month, Hollander will host an installment

of the series, starring three local comics: one head-

liner, one featured comic, and one special guest.

For July 5, that’s JC Sibala, Kate Barton, and Doug

Morris, respectively. It’s a boon not only to peo-

ple who might not have close-to-home local acts

but also to the comedians. There are only so many

shows, and national headliners usually bring in

their own opening acts. “If I can have a Friday- or

Saturday-night show and get anywhere from four

to eight comics a little more work, a little more

money,” Hollander says, “then I feel like I’m doing

a service to our local community.”

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