Judy Gold. Photo provided by judygold.com.
From the moment Judy Gold comes on stage, you can’t help but laugh. Gold is an expert comedienne with decades of experience – from her roles on shows like Law & Order, 2 Broke Girls, and 30 Rock to her work as a writer and producer on The Rosie O’Donnell Show. As a 6 foot 3 Jewish lesbian raising two sons on the Upper West Side, Gold has a unique view of the world and is able to bring this view into her comedy. She’s a likable performer who is sarcastic but not bitter – and who knows not to take herself too seriously.
Her material is fresh and original and directly relates to her target audience.
Performing for an older Jewish crowd at the Jewish Community Center, Gold plays to her audience – starting with jokes about knee replacements (she’s the original ‘tran-knee’) and her time performing in Israel. From there, she goes into a narrative about her therapist, who purposely mispronounces words to sound smarter. Participation from the crowd makes the comedy better; at one point, Gold addresses a therapist in the audience. With her quick wit, Gold is able to respond to the therapist’s refusal to give her name and ‘picks’ on this therapist throughout the show (which really is part of the fun).
Of course, Gold’s family is inspiration for much of her material. Gold complains about her son, Henry, who trashed her apartment. When she discovers from a wedding announcement that her therapist’s daughter has multiple degrees from prestigious universities, she convinces the therapist that Henry is turning over a new leaf. Gold also talks about her relationship with her ex-partner of 20 years and her relationship with her current partner, a therapist who is forever asking probing questions. However, it’s Gold’s stereotypical Jewish mother who provides the best material – from worrying about Gold driving at night to worrying that the hunched man at the nursing home will steal her New York Times. When Gold provides a topic the audience can directly relate to – such as a neurotic Jewish mother – she really shines.
Gold’s comedy also references current US trends. America’s obsession with food is told through jokes involving juicing, vegetarians, and the need to obsess over being lactose-intolerant and gluten-free. Gold also brings up gofundme pages, saying they should be pages with a different kind of f word in the middle. After all, if people have gofundme pages for their pipe dreams, she should have one for her AMEX bill.
Given the older demographic, Gold picks on two of the younger people in the audience, showing how much technology has changed over time. She pantomimes a rotary phone, a typewriter, winding the window down in a car, and actually getting up to turn the TV channel, asking the young couple whether they recognize any of those actions. When the young couple fails to recognize some of the actions that were done so long ago – like back in the 1980s – the audience erupts with laughter. Although she’s picking on members of the audience, it’s all good-natured fun.
Gold is a versatile performer – using commentary of everyday things, self-effacing humor, audience involvement, and pantomimes to keep the laughs going. Her material is fresh and original and directly relates to her target audience. Gold takes over the stage with her wit – bringing the audience together in the shared experience of laughter.
Running Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes.
Advisory: Adult humor.
For more information about Judy Gold, click here.
