(HUDSON, N.Y.) – “House of Tards,” the latest show by comedy trio Unitard, will be performed at Stageworks/Hudson on Saturday, June 27, 2015, at 8pm. Unitard is a series of comic sketches and monologues skewering social, political and sexual mores. Programs alternate between solo monologues and group pieces, with a gay sensibility.
The acclaimed comedy trio Unitard features the combined talents of Mike Albo (former New York Times columnist and author of The Underminer as well as established solo performer), Nora Burns (of the comedy group The Nellie Olesons), and David Ilku (member of the Dueling Bankheads).
The trio’s first new show in over two years, “House of Tards” premiered in October 2014 at the Stonewall Inn, where it played an extended run through December. The show had its West Coast premiere in March 2015, playing the Cavern Club Theatre in Los Angeles and the Oasis in San Francisco before returning to the Stonewall Inn on March 19.
Tickets are $20 and can be purchased by phone at 518.822.9667 or online at Stageworks/Hudson.
Unitard is a wildly twisted, outspoken comedy group from New York City. For over 15 years, they have performed from coast to coast and points in between as well as Canada. Collectively and individually they have performed in venues and festivals across the US including We’re Funny That Way: Toronto, Aspen Comedy festival, Toyota Comedy Festival, Joe’s Pub: NYC, HBO Workspace: LA, PS122: NYC, Highways: LA, SF Sketchfest: San Francisco, Andy Warhol Museum: Pittsburgh, Theater Offensive: Boston, Oberon: Harvard Square Cambridge, The Maui Cultural Center, as well as Portland, Seattle, Provincetown and Columbus. Some of their work has been featured on, CNN, Bravo, VH1, Logo TV, and Comedy Central.
Mike Albo is the author of the novels Hornito and The Underminer: The Best Friend Who Casually Destroys Your Life (co-written with Virginia Heffernan), as well as the novella, The Junket. His writing has appeared in numerous magazines, anthologies and web sites, including New York Magazine, GQ, Out, The New Yorker and The New York Times. As a solo artist, he’s performed all over the US, Canada and in Europe. Solo shows include Mike Albo, Mike Albo; Spray; Please Everything Burst; My Price Point; and most recently, an Off Broadway production of The Junket, directed by David Schweizer.
Nora Burns is a founding member of the comedy groups Unitard and the Nellie Olesons and has performed across the country in venues from PS122, LaMama, and Joe’s Pub in NYC to Highways, Cavern Club and HBO workspace in LA. She has also performed at the Aspen Comedy Festival, Just for Laughs in Montreal and We’re Funny That Way in Toronto. She just finished performing her first solo show, Honey, I’m Home in NYC and LA. She has appeared in the films Florent: Queen of the Meat Market, Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist, Broken Hearts Club and Boys Life 3, among others. Her television appearances include Logo’s “Wisecrack” comedy show and the “Sandra Bernhard Experience.”
David Ilku first appeared in various performances in New York City night clubs. He has worked in theater projects with the New York Theater Workshop, Drama Dept., the Culture Project, and TWEED Theater Works, among others. His film credits include Imagine I’m Beautiful, Love Hunter, In Our Nature, Full Grown Men, Risk, Blue Steel, Godass, Night Journey, and Liquid Sky. He also co-wrote and performed the short film Salvation for Giorgio Armani. TV credits include “Spin City,” “The Cosby Show,” and Comedy Central’s “Premium Blend.” He was one-half of the comedy duo The Dueling Bankheads, and was an Island Records recording artist in the band World at a Glance.
Stageworks has established a reputation for its ambitious programming and adventurous productions. The company is especially known for producing the bold, risk-taking work of new dramatic voices. Central to its vision is Futures, an integrative program designed to move Stageworks to the forefront of new play development. Stageworks is both the experiment and the resource to infuse the whole life of the theater with a creative process that produces new ways of expressing, interpreting and sharing the human experience.
Stageworks is a member of the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce and Perform Columbia. It is the recipient of a Proctors Regional Arts Award inaugurated by Proctors Theatre in 2008 to honor the outstanding work of performing arts organizations. For four consecutive years, Stageworks was distinguished in Metroland Magazine as “Best Theater Company.” Stageworks is the recipient of the Crystal Apple Award from the Chamber of Commerce for providing a positive effect both culturally and economically on the quality of life in our community.
Plays are for everyone, whether written by students, established authors or emerging dramatists. Theater illuminates, expresses and interprets the human experience and profoundly serves as a global stage for social exchange and enrichment. Stageworks complements its mainstage season with a series of programs to encourage and engage young people, traditional theatergoers and new audiences. Stageworks continues to actively take a leadership role in establishing the Hudson Valley as a cultural destination by exploring and expanding its reputation for developing new theatrical works, forms and programs.