The Dark Room is your one-stop shop for comedy, theater, events, entertainment,
rehearsal space and recording studio facilities (both pre- and post-production).
2263 Mission Street, between 18th and 19th San Francisco, CA 94110
Call 415-401-7987 for info.
Joshua Norton I reigns once more at the Dark Room Theater in
Emperor Norton: The Musical, a hilarious tribute to San Francisco, its eccentric characters and the man who refused to let it be called "Frisco!"
Based on a true story, businessman Joshua Norton lost his money and his mind and proclaimed himself “Emperor of the United States” in post-Gold Rush San Francisco. Thanks to the free-wheeling spirit of the infamous Barbary Coast, Emperor Norton went on to print his own money, conceive the Bay Bridge, consort with royalty, propose to the Queen of England, befriend Mark Twain and become the most beloved San Franciscan of the 19th Century.
EMPEROR NORTON the Musical generated rave reviews during its six-week, sold-out, premiere run at the Dark Room in 2005-2006 and inspired a “Farley” cartoon by the SF Chronicle’s late, beloved Phil Frank!
Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm Sundays at 3pm June 12 - July 5, 2009
Chicken Scratch Presents: The Tightness of Fowl
Hey there Chicken Scratch fans we are back for a bunch of shows at The Dark Room. We've been invited back by Maggie, the mascot dog, so we thought we'd step it up with a song and sketches! So for those who cannot afford a vacation, we feel your pain and will bring joy through song. Has anyone ever wanted to take a Mulligan on something really important well, we address that too!
Chicken Scratch is a group comprised of seven talented individuals who primarily play in the world of Improv. We come from all over this land and have found each other thankfully. We perform San Francisco and stick to humor of an adult nature. Please don't bring the children and if you do we will not be responsible for explaining anything.
Best Alternative Comedy show in San Francisco. Featuring comedians from Comedy Central, SXSW, and the Comedians of Comedy tour!
Tickets: $5 at the door.
Wednesdays at 8pm June 17 - July 24, 2009
James Judd's Whoop Click!
James Judd’s Whoop Click! is a new weekly, one-hour show from the writer/performer of the immensely popular one-man show 7 Sins. Part theater, part variety show, Whoop Click! is a mix of Judd’s hilarious style of autobiographical comedy and guest appearances. Comedian Marilyn Pittman is featured. Stories and additional guest performers rotate weekly, so every show is unique. Free glass of Champagne for all guests over 21.
"Who is this guy and why am I laughing so hard?" San Francisco Weekly
"He's David Sedaris on a pot of coffee." Democrat & Chronicle
"He's Oscar Wilde in the land of Starbucks." San Francisco Sentinel
"Seeing Judd is like watching Garland play the Palladium." Chortle
"An engaging and hilarious self-chronicler" Bay Area Reporter
Things We Made offers an atmosphere to share unconventional creations.
Patrick Bulger and Jesse Fernandez, a comedy duo from space, present
thought-provoking pieces about anything from gangster rap to starfish
safety. Paul Marino brings to the stage a salad of wit, characters,
illustrations, movement, music, and even magic (illusion) from space.
The savory music of DJ Real is glazed by his passionate dance, and
broken up with one-man, tech-savvy skits and corny jokes from space.
To see video from previous shows check out thingswemade.com, a
website from space!
Tickets: $10 at the door.
Third Saturday of Every Month 10pm
Bad Movie Night
Every
Sunday 8PM $5
In the tradition of Mystery Science Theater 3000, except you can't tell which ones are the robots. — David Manning
Cinema is our culture's dominant art form.
It holds up a mirror to who we are.
It reflects our society, our dreams, our hopes, our fears.
Our films are how future generations are going to judge us.
Unfortunately, most of them suck.
Seriously, though—ever notice how you can't walk down the street or open a magazine or stand in line at a store or simply exist without ads for some dumbass multi-zillion dollar movie about a talking kangaroo
being shoved down your throat?
And then they expect you to pay fifteen dollars to see it in some googolplex, and after sitting through a half hour of commercials? Or watch it on DVD and have to sit through even more commercials and anti-piracy ads that you can't skip past? Doesn't it all just piss you off?
If so—or if you just like to have a good time—then Bad Movie Night is for you.
Laugh with the hosts riffing on the movie. Yell your own comments. Try to figure out what the hell "Skull Films!" means. Help yourself to the free popcorn. Enjoy the intoxicating, brown-bagged beverage of your choice purchased from the store across the street. (Don't worry if the guy behind the counter glares at you. He does that to everyone.)
Some of you youngsters might not remember this, but once upon a time, sequels had Roman numerals attached to them. It wouldn't be
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, it would be fucking Transformers 2 and we'd be happy with it. Granted, some sequels tried to have it both ways, like the Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.
These days, though, not only do they not bother with the Roman numerals, they put the subtitles in right from the start. If you'd never heard of the movies before, would you be able to guess what order the Pirates of the Caribbean series goes in? Or The Lord of the Rings, for that matter? Yeah, exactly.
The Star Wars series is a special case, starting out simply being called Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. The whole "Episode" business wasn't added to the titles until later. Retcon!
Even the Rocky series nuked the fridge at end, when what should have been called Rocky VI was just called Rocky Balboa.
But back in the eighties, ol' Sly was keeping the faith with the simply named Rocky IV.
Released in 1985, it's quite possibly the most 1985-ish movie imaginable. Something else the youngsters might not remember is that twenty-four years ago, our big enemies did not have brown skin. It's hard to imagine now, this notion that the people who hate our freedom and want to destroy our way of life yadda yadda yadda had white skin and blue eyes.
I mean, they didn't even wear beards and turbans. How scary is that? They looked like us! Like cylons! It's a good thing they talked funny.
So, yeah. Ronald Reagan was president, the Russians were the bad guys, and this week's feature led the charge (we apologize for Burt Young's scary bug-eyes):
Yep, that's Fulbright Scholarship recipient Dolph Lundgren from the Bad Movie Night classics Johnny Mnemonic and Masters of the Universe, making him what The Agony Booth would call a "repeat offender."
We must break you, Dolph.
Your
hosts Sherilyn Connelly, Mike Spiegelman and Maura Sipila would rather walk through fire than watch this movie.
Upcoming Phlegms:
July 12, 2009
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington Jimmy Stewart plays a congressman who--oh, it doesn't matter. USA! USA! USA!
Filibustering pandemonium reigns.
Hosts:
Jim Fourniadis, Mikl-Em, Wylie Herman and other just plain folks.
July 19, 2009
Top Gun
Tom Cruise plays a pilot who--oh, who cares? USA! USA! USA!
Tower-buzzing wackiness ensues.
Hosts:
Sherilyn Connelly, Jerome Skaggs, Tristan Buckner and other mavericks.
July 27, 2009
The Patriot Mel Gibson plays a parent who--oh, there's just no point. USA! USA! USA!
Redcoated pandemonium reigns.
Hosts:
Jim Fourniadis, Mikl-Em, A.J. Margolis and other seditionists.
August 2, 2009
Over the Top
Sylvester Stallone plays an arm-wrestling trucker (arm-wrestling trucker? yes!) who plays by own his rules.
Veiny wackiness ensues.
Hosts:
Sherilyn Connelly, Dan Foley, Tristan Buckner and other rasslers.
August 9, 2009
Cliffhanger Sylvester Stallone plays an mountain climber rescue worker who plays by own his rules.
Vertiginous pandemonium reigns.
Hosts:
Jim Fourniadis, Mikl-Em, Ziad Ezzat and other hangers-on.
August 16, 2009
Rambo (2008)
Sylvester Stallone plays a steroid-addled old fart who plays by own his rules.
Rambly wackiness ensues.
Hosts:
Sherilyn Connelly, Mike Spiegelman, Wylie Herman and other hormone junkies.
August 23, 2009
Judge Dredd Sylvester Stallone plays an...um...a leatherman (or something) who plays by own his rules.
Gold-shouldered pandemonium reigns.
Hosts:
Jim Fourniadis, Andy Wenger, Damien Chacona and other prosecutors.
August 30, 2009
Tango & Cash
Sylvester Stallone plays a cop who plays by own his rules.
Spectacled wackiness ensues.
Hosts:
Sherilyn Connelly, Mike Spiegelman, Maura Sipila and other waltzing creditors.
Hey
People!! New designs just in time to totally miss the holidays!!
Visit
either our Dark Room
store or our new Maggie
store and buy our shirts and tiles. They woulda made a great
Holiday gift!!!
