Frank Brichetto

Chicago Correspondent

Royal George Theater

16541 N. Halsted St., Chicago

www.theroyalgeorgetheatre.com

312-988-9000

Most of us have heard the name Lenny Bruce and know that he was a stand-up comic with a reputation for boundary pushing comedy.  Many of us know that he spent time in jail for violating obscenity laws in LA, New York and Chicago, and a few of us know that he died of an overdose while awaiting his appeal.  What we don’t realize is that EVERY comic since Lenny Bruce has been influenced, for better or worse, by his style, his material, the way he presented himself onstage, and yes, especially because of his casual use of language deemed legally obscene at the time.

His comic routines shined a bright spotlight on many of the hypocrisies that still permeate American culture, and did it with a smooth, natural, engaging manner that his audiences admired and paid handsomely to see.  He reminds you immediately of Eddie Murphy and George Carlin, both of whom were greatly influenced by Lenny’s humor and free-flowing style.

What you will find in this show is a comic chronicle of Lenny Bruce, his great passions, his extra-ordinary loves, and his boundless courage that led him to defend free speech, for all of us, to the very end of his life. That he did this through the medium of comedy, at which he was brilliant and inspired, is all the more astonishing.

Ronnie Marmo wrote the show, and under the masterful direction of Joe Mantegna, convincingly introduces us to the life and death of Lenny Bruce.

This is important.  This is real.  This is truly, deeply funny.  This is tragic.

I need to see it again. Please, please come to the Royal George Theater and experience  I’M NOT A COMEDIAN…I’M LENNY BRUCE.

The show runs 90 minutes, with no intermission, and will be presented through February 16^th, 2020.

For more information on Lenny Bruce, his life and legacy, visit: https://lennybruce.org