Middleditch and Schwartz – State Theater – Minneapolis MN – June 13th 2019

The Middleditch and Schwartz duo brought their comedy improv act to a sold-out State Theatre in Minneapolis on Thursday June 13th. Each show on the tour is completely different and improvised from audience’s suggestions.

Thomas Middleditch can be seen in HBO’s hit comedy Silicon Valley as the lead character, Richard Hendricks, in which he’s received Emmy nominations for Outstanding Lead Actor and three Critics’ Choice nominations for Best Actor. Middleditch can also be seen in the newest Godzilla film and Sci-Fi thriller Replicas, out on DVD.

Ben Schwartz is a triple threat, Emmy Award winning writer, actor and comedian. You may recognize him from the television shows Parks and Recreation as Jean-Ralphio Saperstein or Showtime’s House of Lies as Clyde Oberholt. Schwartz is currently in the works with another Showtime show, The Wrong Mans, as well as producing it alongside JJ Adams and James Corden. He’s also been in films such as Night School, This Is Where I Leave You, Happy Anniversary, and is the voice for the upcoming Sonic the Hedgehog movie.

As you first look on stage it looks as if they will be sitting on a stage, just the two of them, two chairs next to one another on a big stage. So as a first thought, you maybe think they will be sitting there, talking to each other, or the audience. However, they come out and already engage with the audience and start the laughs off immediately. It was mentioned many times how “gorgeous” the weather was in Minnesota. Because as you know, Minnesota weather is always super unpredictable and it actually was a gorgeous summer day. Offerings from the crowd went from weddings, all the way to IVF. This was chosen as the improv act for the night. Their show is based off one suggestion from the audience and creating a scene based off that suggestion. So as you can guess, was absolutely hilarious. I don’t think anyone from the audience was silent for a full minute throughout the entire hour and a half comedy act. Everyone laughing the entire time made for an extraordinarily entertaining night. As this was my first comedy show to review I was curious how the night was going to go, but I can say that it was an exceptionally humorous and compelling improv show for onlookers. This duo is incredibly witty and sharp with their humor and comedic act, something I would very much enjoy seeing again and again, as each night is different. Seeing what they come up with is always something to look forward to. If you did not witness this outstanding night of comedy, or do not live in Minnesota, make sure you look up to see when they are in your town next and catch a night of belly laughs. Unless you don’t like laughing or humor, but either way you’re the one missing out.

Review and photos Kaila Turck