Blacktastic Black History Month Blacktacular … Black!

Date/Time:Daily from Thu., February 25 until Fri., February 26

Price: $20-$50 Contact Info: | Event Website

For Whom …

By Hiya Swanhuyser

“Comedian” is a small term for a person who does standup, but also directs, teaches, and wields PowerPoint like a light saber. W. Kamau Bell is all that and a political commentator at his new show, Blacktastic Black History Month Blacktacular … Black! And he must be called comedian, since we have no other word for a professionally funny person other than “funnyperson,” and we don’t like that one. Bell’s the first person to have made a joke about Barack Obama, (according to Comedy Central), the star of several recent long-running shows, and a man we recently had the pleasure to describe as “blowing the fuck up.” L.A. has noticed him, suffice to say. He’s also a profligate reTweeter. A new CD, Face Full of Flour wonders “why black + white = black,” among other things. Bell is known for to-the-instant topicality, so expect him to take the piss out of John Mayer and muse on liveblogging Precious, plus commentary on Black History Month, aka “awkward MacDonald’s commercials about Harriet Tubman.”

My episode of Spark airs again THIS WEEK! Apparently, I’m an artist now. I talk racism, Pumpkin Pie, & you get to meet the elusive White Mike Johnson!

Westerhout, Bell, and Blades

See a preview of this Spark episode.

• Play Real Media

Spark follows photographer Katherine Westerhout inside a forgotten West Oakland landmark — the 16th Street Train Station. Once the terminus of the Transcontinental Railroad, this Beaux Arts gem has been off-limits since 1989, but that might be about to change.

Next, comedian W. Kamau Bell shares his wry observations on race and his personal stories about being black in an Obama-era America.

Then, meet Wil Blades, a virtuoso at playing a soulful instrument from a bygone era, the B3 organ.

Upcoming Broadcasts:

Wed, Feb 10, 2010 — 7:30pm email reminder
Thu, Feb 11, 2010 — 1:30am email reminder
Fri, Feb 12, 2010 — 11:30pm email reminder
more airings»

Here are some hot of the presses clips of The W. Kamau Bell Curve: Ending Racism in About an Hour from last year at The Comedy Central Stage in Los Angeles. Enjoyapate!

If you liked ‘em there’s more over at my YouTube Page.

FROM THE EAST BAY EXPRESS

Seldom do homegrown comedians have as much personal magnetism or shrewd observations as W. Kamau Bell, who is best known for his ever-evolving one-man show, The W. Kamau Bell Curve. Bell and Kevin Avery used to have a weekly radio spot on Live 105 called Siskel and Negro, which they mostly dedicated to film reviews — with some pop-culture miscellany mixed in. At this point, though, Bell has busied himself with an ongoing critique of race politics, integration, sanctimoniousness, silent hypocrisy, and glaring inequity in the so-called Obama Age. Bell constantly recobbles his material to stay on top of the news cycle, so it’s a different show from month to month. This New Year’s Eve he’ll revisit the big stories from 2009, and examine pop culture from a racy angle. Aptly titled “Laughter Against the Machine,” Bell’s night of “guerilla comedy” also features the equally incisive Hari Kondabolu, and local favorite Nato Green.

Buy Tickets HERE!