No joke. Philly will crown a pun champ this weekend
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Photos: Courtesy of It's Always Punny in Philadelphia
Performative dads, rad dads, deadbeat dads, just show up … because Philly is hosting the ultimate dad-joke competition this weekend.
Why it matters: Nothin' is too hoagie to fly wit this crowd.
Driving the news: Returning champ Emma Taylor Miller, an improv actor from New York, is coming back to Philly to try to hold onto her crown in Saturday's Halloween-themed "It's Always Punny in Philadelphia: Jawn of the Dead" competition at Helium Comedy Club.
Flashback: The show, in its eighth installment, started small in 2022 as a way to give some of Philly's talented stand-up comedians and improv masters a chance to flex.
- But it's become a ballyhooed event, held twice a year, that consistently sells out.
How it works: There's two competitions: In the "pundits" round, eight preregistered contestants riff for three and a half minutes on the topic of their choice to see who packs the most pun-ch into their routines.
- Celebrity judges, including the Inquirer's Stephanie Farr, will pick three finalists, and the crowd will crown a champ in a cheer-off.
- The second round is basically a casting call for future "pundits." People can sign up to compete the day of the "Pundemonium" round, a rap battle-style, round-robin tourney where contestants pick topics out of hat and rattle puns off the top of their dome.
What they're saying: "This is gladiatorial blood sport," event founder Aaron Schwartzbaum tells Axios.
Zoom in: So what's the art of the pun? Here are a few tips from the experts on what makes a pun, well, pungent or a crowd-pleaser:
- Successful contestants figure out very quickly how to whip up the crowd with their stage presence. Good deliveries make up for bad puns, fellow organizer and past winner Mylin Batipps says.
Case in point: Schwartzbaum knew his audience: "What is a lumberjack's favorite breakfast cereal? Axios."
Batipps says you gotta know when to punt.
- "You have to pack the perfect amount of puns into your routine," he says. Adding too much wordplay dizzies the audience and leaves them trying to digest your cleverness.
What we're watching: Organizers want to host a Tournament of Champions event for the 10th show.
If you go: Saturday at 4pm. Tickets: $15.99+