Bears Place hosts Comedy Caravan

Laughter is the best medicine and Bear’s Place is hard at work prescribing the funnies.\nBear’s Place has been on the Comedy Caravan circuit 21 years. Comedians on the circuit perform in nightclubs and bars all across the country. Comedians Russ Nagel and Mel Fine performed on June 11.\n“It’s a great room to perform in,” feature comedian Mel Fine said. “The mindset here is comedy.”\nIn the 2005 USA Today article “10 great places to sit down and watch comedy,” Bear’s Place was ranked the 10th best place in the nation to watch a comedy show. Everyone from Dave Chappelle to Roseanne Barr has performed at Bear’s at some point in their career, Master of Ceremonies Brad Wilhelm said.\nBefore the show starts, Wilhelm recited to the audience the rules of the show. By the time he got to the last and most important rule, the audience recited it with him: “Laugh your fucking ass off!” \nThe first comedian up was Bloomington resident Ben Moore. He did a 15-minute set to warm the audience up for Fine and Nagel.\n“I was really nervous,” Moore said. “After the set I went straight to the bar.”\nFine performed next with her 30 minute set. She reflected on life in the 80s and bigger women who like to dress scandalously.\n“Don’t they know they look like a busted tube of biscuits?” Fine said. \nNagel took the stage after Fine. Wearing a leather vest, chains and fingerless leather gloves, it is obvious why he is billed as “the funniest biker.”\n“You all are looking at me like you are waiting on the Indian and the construction guy to show up,” Nagel joked as he took the stage. \nNagel’s performance had the audience laughing for the entire 45-minute set. Jokes ranged from quick-hit one-liners to a pantomime detailing the intricacies of driving while intoxicated with the police following you. At the end of the show, Nagel stuck around to greet the fans and sell his comedy CD.\nNagel has been a professional comedian since 1987. This performance was his first in Bloomington.\n“The show went well; sometimes you get lucky,” Nagel said. “Every town is different; you never what an audience will respond to.”\nNext up for Bear’s Place and Comedy Caravan is Robert York featuring Dan Fontaine on June 16.