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I only tried to watchBlack Mirroronce.
I find the idea of a capital-SSatire about our modern dependence on technology just so exhausting.
Ive been using it a lot since COVID-19 started ravaging our country and forced us to self-isolate.
Mostly while watching comedy.
Sometimes the shows are good, sometimes they are bad, and theyre always a little weird.
She was on a stage, performing stand-up in front of a wall of screens.
Displayed on each was the face of an audience member watching from home.
I asked Tomlinson what it was like performing for rows of faces on screens.
Nothing replaces live shows, she said, but this is the absolute closest thing.
Right away, something unexpected happened.
An audience member responded in a plainspoken voice, Im from Dallas.
This was a result of the lack of social norms for an event like this.
Soon after, another unexpected thing happened I laughed.
The comedian is the conduit for audience connection.
For theInCrowdshows, headphones are suggested, so the laughs feel especially close.
Better yet was the guy who repeated a punch line he enjoyed: Tickling my pizza.
It took a while, but each comedian was able to lock into a rhythm.
Its throwing me off, he said, because every joke theres a moment delay before everyone laughs.
And Im like,Oh shit.
That one didnt work.
What the fuck else do I have?…
I would hate to bomb in front of a simulated crowd at a warehouse in Sun Valley.
When I caught my breath from laughing, I realized why Id put this off for so long.
I was enjoying ittoomuch.
I thought of what Tomlinson said: Nothing replaces live shows, but it is the absolute closest thing.
But does nothing replace live shows?
At first, its strange to feel like you are laughing with people when youre not actually with them.
It was scary how quickly I was able to adapt.
Im Domhnall Gleeson inBlack Mirror.Im Neo.
Im in the Matrix fromThe Matrix.One blue pill, like.
Next time, Ill pay for the VIP package.
