CLAYTON — Get your tickets to laugh Friday and Saturday nights at Endeavor Hall when Clayton Community Theatre presents a stand-up comedy night, “Cougar and Pray,” staring Monique Marvez.
“My name is Monique. I put the “ho” in honesty.”
“Don’t trust skinny chicks … Watch a woman eating barbecue. If she sucks the meat off the bone and it’s so clean you can put it back in the cow, you want that one. All right?”
“I’ve been married and divorced three times. Yeah. But it’s not my fault, it’s not my fault. I’m Hispanic and Catholic and I’m a good girl, but where I came from back in the 80s you broke it, you bought it. You know what I mean?”
And Marvez’s jokes, tailored to her audience, just kept coming. Critics call her the Latin diva of comedy, saying her work “is the perfect balance of Aha! and Ha-ha!”
Marvez began doing stand-up in the 1990s in her native Florida. where she quickly became known for her biting sarcasm. She soon began hosting her own show in the posh deco nightclub district of Miami Beach. As her fame grew, she released her first recording, “Ladyslipper,” followed by “Built for Comfort.”
Most recently Marvez performed her first one-hour Showtime Stand-up Comedy Special on March 14 based on her book “Not Skinny, Not Blonde.”
During her routines, Marvez, 50, gets personal about her own life experiences, including her three failed marriages and current relationship with a much younger man, Clayton’s own thirty-something Kyle Fitzgerald.
Fitzgerald is a 2000 graduate of Clayton Valley High School, where he was named MVP, Mr. Defense and All-League after totaling 166 tackles. Rather than continuing with football, the natural comedian began doing stand-up part time after appearing on the “Monique and the Man” radio show in San Diego, where the couple lives. The thirty-something insurance account executive often opens for Marvez.
Fitzgerald’s ties to Clayton, and Clayton Theatre Company Managing Director Roxanne Pardi’s friendship with the couple, made it possible to get them to add Clayton to their 2013 tour. Marvez also gave the little startup theater company a discount on the upcoming performance titled “Cougar and Pray.”
Roxanne said the title is a play on the word “prey,” referring to Marvez’s relationship with Fitzgerald and the need for prayer.
Fitzgerald will open with 15 to 20 minutes of his own material before handing off to Marvez and her bawdy — sometimes a little raunchy — act.
“I told her don’t dummy down the act for us, but take the ‘F’ word out,” said Pardi.
The event begins a 7 p.m. with “No Host” cocktails and food, followed at 8 p.m. with the show. After the performance, people are invited to stay for a “Meet and Greet” with the comics.
All proceeds from the night’s event go to support the Clayton Community Theatre and, in particular ,to fund its debut show “The Robber Bridegroom,” scheduled to open Oct. 18. It’s a musical with book and lyrics by Alfred Uhry and music written by Robert Waldman. The story is based on Eudora Welty’s 1942 novella of the same name.
Auditions for the show will be held from noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, July 14 and from 7 to 9:30 p.m. Monday and Tuesday, July 15 and 16. More information on the upcoming musical and auditions will be posted on the community theater’s website in the next couple of weeks said Pardi.
She said tickets for “Cougar and Pray” are selling fast. Tickets are limited because the theater is small, so Pardi encourages everyone to purchase their tickets now for a great night of laughter.
BOX:
What: “Cougar and Pray” Comedy Show
Where: Endeavor Hall, 6008 Center St., Clayton
When: 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, June 14 and 15
Who: Clayton Theatre Company
Cost: $30 includes a free drink
Tickets & Information: 925-222-9106 claytontheatrecompany.com
‘Cougar and Pray’ Comedy Show
Where: Endeavor Hall, 6008 Center St., Clayton
When: 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, June 14 and 15
Who: Clayton Theatre Company
Cost: $30, includes a free drink
Tickets and Information: 925-222-9106; claytontheatrecompany.com
