Mac’s Comedy Night returning as outdoor event

MONDAY, JULY 27 — Mac’s Monday Comedy Night is the longest-running comedy show in Lansing. Like countless other live gigs, it was shut down by the coronavirus. Now, the show is returning from its hiatus. Starting next week, Mac's Comedy Night will be hosted on Thursdays at Replay Entertainment Exchange. 

For more than a decade, a rotating cast of comedians has shown up to Mac's to elicit laughter, talk shop and throw back a few free drinks. The show’s consistency earned it a large following. City Pulse readers voted it Best Comedy Night in 2019’s Top of The Town Awards.

Co-founder and co-host Dan Currie wanted to return to that consistency, even though the world has undergone massive changes since the outbreak of COVID-19 and the murder of George Floyd.

“About a week ago, the owner of Replay called and asked if us Mac’s hosts wanted to start up the show in his parking lot,” Currie said. “It hasn’t been too hectic to get it back up and running, booking comedians. We’ve been doing this show for so long, things just fell back into place.”

Replay owner Ted Wilson plans to help out with the technical side of the show: mics, lights and setting up the stage. There will also be a food truck, mocktail bar and DJ for audience members to enjoy. Currie said that they did a rehearsal performance last week that went well.

Replay’s parking lot can safely hold 200 audience members. Attendees at the show are required to wear masks, or they will be refused entry. “The main thing for us is distance,” said Currie. “I can’t imagine that anyone who likes our show will have a problem with wearing a mask. Fans of our comedy show usually take a hardcore stance on this type of stuff.”

Longtime fans of the show can expect to see the four Mac’s hosts — Currie, Megan Cottington-Heath, Robert Jenkins and Pat Seivert — plus Lansing regulars Nick Earl and Nick Leydorf.

In addition to the regulars, Currie invited comedians from around the state including Mike Logan from Grand Rapids and Zach Martina, a touring comedian from the east side of the state.

Currie doesn’t necessarily know how much people want to — or are even able to — laugh in the age of coronavirus. National tragedies tend to change the comedy landscape. “I was eleven when 9/11 happened, but I know that that’s when we started leaning into shock humor,” explained Currie. “In the Obama era, things got sillier. I don’t know what’s going to happen now.”

Currie acknowledged that comedians are going to have to be sensitive. For example, an audience member could potentially have a relative who was affected, or killed, by the coronavirus. He said that whatever happens is at the mercy of the audience. He has hope that comedy will still be able to thrive in Lansing.

“The world will be different after this. Not just COVID, there’s been the Black Lives Matter protests too,” said Currie. “Comedians have had all this opportunity and all this time to work on new things. If the world is different, then comedy is going to have to be different too.”