Shock-jock radio hits the road
How do you take a monument to bad taste like the Opie & Anthony radio show and turn it into a touring comedy festival?
That was the question put to artist rep and tour coordinator Peter Pappalardo when the morning show jocks, who are carried by both
Pappalardo took Opie & Anthony's original vision of a packaged comedy tour with some theatrical elements and turned it into a moving festival more comparable to Lollapalooza or Ozzfest than a typical stand-up event. While Pappalardo tried to use as many ideas as the guys and the local promoters came up with, not everything made the final cut. ``We're trying to sell the concept of an anything goes type of atmosphere," he says, ``but there are obviously local laws."
Pappalardo promises the tour will be true to the mix of rock-star attitude and often crude humor that has made the show so popular. In addition to the main comedy event, there'll be something called the ``Village," which features exhibits and attractions like a Clinic where women in nurses' uniforms dole out back rubs and booths designed by die-hard O&A fans, known as ``Pests." There will also be a Petting Zoo for the show's regular sidekicks like Twitchels and Stalker Patty. ``You can actually feed them candy corn and take your pictures with them," Pappalardo says.
``It's a good day out for people that don't have jobs," says Vos, a regular on the radio show, as he busts on the show's fan base. ``You can always tell an O&A fan because they have no muscle tone."
The stage where the comics perform will be a go-go bar, complete with poles for dancers. ``I don't think we're trying to be in-your-face offensive; I think we're trying to mimic the radio show and bring what people get to listen to on a daily basis, including the comics," says Pappalardo.
Some of the exhibitions were news to Vos. When told Opie & Anthony are planning a petting zoo, he asked, ``Are they really? I hope I don't get a letter, `Hey, you're in the petting zoo.' "
Vos counts Norton, O'Neal, and some of the other O&A regulars among his best friends, but it's the comic firepower of the whole line up that impresses him the most. ``I feel sorry for the guy who's gotta go last," he says. ``But it'll be a lot of fun."
Opie & Anthony’s Traveling Virus plays Worcester’s DCU Center tomorrow at 7 p.m. Call 617-931-2000 or visit www.ticketmaster.com.
