Sid Caesar once said “Comedy has to be based on truth. You take the truth and you put a little curlicue at the end”. This statement was solidified on Friday October 22nd at the Capital One Hall in Tysons, VA when D.L. Hughley one of the Original Kings of Comedy made his debut at the brand new venue located in Northern Virginia.
Chocolate City native and comedian Jay Phillips served as the Master of Ceremonies and the rudimentary funnyman of the night. Through a sharp thirty minute set, Philips had the crowd in stiches with his unique perspectives on relationships. Phillips illuminated self-confidence his entire time on stage, and following his set I immediately followed him on the gram. The highlight of Philip’s set though, had to be his impersonation of how my Forever President Barrack Obama would deal with Michelle Obama during an argument.
Directly after Phillips’s performance, comedian Bodacious was up next. I had no idea that Bodacious was one of the opening which made the night even better. I had the pleasure of seeing Bodacious open for D.L. a few years back at the D.C. Improv, and one of his jokes about edges on a woman still randomly cracks me up. Bodacious began his set by letting the audience about his battle with COVID which provided a pristine transition to his commentary on everything from cancel culture to relations with a plus sized man. Bodacious’s final joke about a past relationship with an older woman was the perfect Segway into our headliner D.L. Hughley.
Taking the stage in a well-groomed gray suit, D.L. was on fire immediately after his introduction by Bodacious. I’ve seen D.L. a few times in the past and even met him back in 2017. The older I’ve gotten the more into Hughley’s comedy. That’s not to say that I never found Hughley funny growing up. However while the nineteen year old version of myself would laugh at Hughley’s roast of an audience member, the forty year old me agrees with his commentary on the current state of America. Hughley’s set while funny also was informative.
Hughley covered a range of topics including his marriage, Bill Cosby, R.Kelly and of course race relations. The strength of Hughley’s comedy now is his ability to make light of serious situations. One of my favorite bits of D.L.’s set involved the January 6th incident. Hughley ended his set with some playful roasting of the audience member. However I will point out that Hughley never went as far to insult someone or hurt feelings.
Regarding the Capital One Hall it was immaculate. From the comfortable seating to the polite ushers and affordable concession stand, I can’t wait to return for another show.
Final Grade A -
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