Interview with LOUNGE-ZILLA's Fiely Matias

If you find yourself thinking "The dccomedyfest has a lot of good acts, but I'm looking for something that is refreshingly adult in nature and outside what I would see in the average club or theater. I bet they don't have that kind of show!" Well, you'd be hands down, flat out, 100% wrong.

Please Welcome Back LOUNGE-ZILLA. This sensational act wowed audiences at the 2005 dccomedyfest and is a fan and critic favorite everywhere they go. This show has it all. Lounging Singing, Adult Humor, and an AMAZING 3-D Special Effects Finale that MUST BE SEEN TO BELIEVE. So get your tickets and line up now to insure you get your seats for this show.

Not convinced yet? Let's meet Fiely Matias (aka LOUNGE-ZILLA) and just see if you can resist getting in line to see him in action.

dccf: Thanks for taking a few minutes to share some info with dccomedyfest audiences. It sounds like Lounge-zilla has been very busy since we saw you guys at the 2005 dccomedyfest. What have you guys been up to since then?

FIELY: The past few years have been all about the 'LOUNGE-ZILLA! - Asian InvAsian Tour!' My trusty piano-clanging sidekick Dennis T. Giacino (better known as 'Scary Manilow') and I have been on the road full- time and it's been a blast! We've performed at by-invite-only comedy fests and venues in New York City, Singapore, Toronto, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Seattle, Boston, Orlando, Atlanta, Palm Springs and, of all places, a cruise ship bound for Belize! We're about to embark on a tour of Canada this summer (Ottawa, Edmonton, Vancouver, Saskatoon and Regina). The last city, Regina, is pronounced like 'Vagina' so it just feels a little bit naughty everytime we talk about it but we're going no matter how anatomically female the place sounds. My future plans also include working on a duet album with Tony Bennet just so I can win a Grammy. Now if only someone would tell him about the project I'd be on my way!

dccf: How did the shows in Prague go? Was the language difference a problem or is good comedy fun a language of its own?

FIELY: Prague was crazy, Euro fun! The castles, the parks, the people -- beautiful! The men, the women -- all gorgeous. I was walking across the Charles Bridge one afternoon and it was jam-packed with hundreds of super-model-like Czechs -- that's when I realized that I was the ugliest person in the city. Prague is a real melting pot of Czechs, Brits, Germans and Americans so most folks speak English there. They loved the show! And for those who didn't speak English -- well, they just cheered when I stepped out the pup tent sporting a giant penis in the 3-D finale of my show. Those newly democratic Commie countries just love anti-establishment, edgy comedy! Besides, where else can you see an Asian that well hung?

dccf: Do you find that audiences know what they are getting themselves into when they come to a Lounge-zilla show?

FIELY: Mostly. We attempt to get the word out in the press with such taglines as "an atomic blast of TWISTED MUSIC, NAUGHTY COMEDY and an OUTRAGEOUS 3-D FINALE that must be seen to be believed!" Or "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned . . . except for a bitter gay Asian cabaret singer with a broken heart and a microphone." Even better -- "He sings. He dances. He sucks! He's the Armaggedon of Queer Cabaret and he's invading the world!" Still, every once in a while, we get someone who thinks they're seeing a cute little Asian guy singing Karaoke! And now with that Sunjaya kid on 'America Idol' -- all the crowds want are goofy hairstyles, funny costumes and off-key singing. Sunjaya and I are doing our best to oblige.

dccf: What made you guys decide to do a bad lounge act comedy show? When did you realize that you had failed to do a bad lounge act and had to accept that you had a great show on your hands?

FIELY: We have a great show on our hands? Thanks for the compliment but don't tell nobody! Our act is much better if the audience's expectations are low. And if they're liquored up a little beforehand. For real, we made the decision to create 'LOUNGE-ZILLA!' -- the most ludicrously awful, self-centered lounge singer known to mankind -- several years ago in New York City. We had mistakenly stumbled into a supremely awful lounge show (which will go unnamed to protect the guilty) which was filled with overly emoted contrived ballads, ridiculous costumes, clunky piano accompaniment and botched tech cues. We felt so bad for the guy. It was sad. Very sad. Which, naturally, makes it very funny and ripe for a comedy spoof -- bad singers, fun punchy lyrics, loud costumes -- who could pass that up?! Think of 'LOUNGE- ZILLA!' as our homage to so-bad-it's-good entertainment -- kinda like 'The Captain and Tennille' only without the creepy sailor outfit and the page boy haircut!

dccf: Which review or award has meant the most to you since you started doing the show?

FIELY: Reviews and awards are great but what's the meant the most to us over the year's is just watching our audiences enjoy the shock and shlock of 'LOUNGE-ZILLA!' Laughter is so very healing and we somehow feel that we're doing our part to make the world a better place. Too Miss America for ya? Well, then the 'BEST COMEDY' and 'BEST OF FEST' awards at the USA National GLBT Theatre Fest, the San Francisco, Orlando and Halifax Fringe Fests feel pretty damn good. And Theatermania.com in New York City calling the show "A helluva lot of fun!" And getting the covers of the San Francisco Weekly, New York Blade, Miami Express News, Orlando Sentinel, Seattle Gay News and the Washington Post (Express Edition) -- that was rewarding. And EdgeBoston.com rating the show an "A+!" above the Blue Man Group, Elaine Stritch's Tony-award winning show and 'The Lion King.' Sweet! But more than all those meaningless kudos, we mostly do the show as a love letter to humanity.

dccf: Should the audience bring their own 3-D glasses?

FIELY: We supply the 3-D glasses free of charge -- we're a class act. Oh, and the best part is that you get to keep the glasses -- take 'em with you. We only ask that you don't tell us what else you do with them in the privacy of your own home. We prefer that little secret stays with you.

dccf: What are you, the Oops Guys, looking forward the most about in coming back to DC?

FIELY: The audiences and the folks who run the dccomedyfest! The best! Blaire, Dave and the dccomedyfest! gang really know how to put on a grand show -- very artist friendly! And the D.C. audiences are great! Real laughers -- and how could you not be considering the political climate nowadays in town? Speaking of which, I am also looking forward to testifying in the Alberto Gonazalez investigation. I have nothing to do with the situation so I know they won't subpeona me but wouldn't I love to appear on CSPAN wearing a glitter kimono and an orange-pink boa? Maybe we could do it in 3-D!

dccf: Occasionally the audience must do things that catch you off guard. What has the audience done at times that has kept the shows fun for you?

FIELY: They show up. That always catches us off guard. Actually, the audience plays a central character in our show. And some folks do find their way to the stage from time to time. We had this 79-year-old grandmother who was a real wise-ass in one of our New England shows last summer. She was so sweet but had the comedy chops (and mouth!) of a truck driver. Always one-upping the 'ZILLA with off-color one-liners! It was an absolute blast! We love the audience interplay during the show. It makes 'LOUNGE-ZILLA!' wildly unpredictable, new and exciting every time you see it and, above all, dangerously LIVE! Q: For dccomedyfest audience members who haven't been lucky enough to see you perform yet, what can they expect to see? FIELY: Something the likes of which they've never seen before! We think that this quote from the Columbus Dispatch in red-state, conservative Ohio says it best: LOUNGE-ZILLA! "Incorporates cartoonish hyperbole, masterful subtlety, strong singing, insult humor, interactive shtick, amusing props, outrageous costumes, partial nudity, profanity and a truly monstrous X-rated 3-D finale that can't be described in a family newspaper." The review goes on to say that I'm "talented", "charming", "clever" and "hilarious" but I would never mention that in an interview. That would be bragging and so declasse!

dccf: Anything you want us to make sure dccomedyfest blog readers know about Lounge-zilla?

FIELY: Come one, come all. 'LOUNGE-ZILLA!' is a joke that everyone gets! The show plays to all crowds -- men, women, straight, gay, in-between, young (well, 16+), not-so-young (even Bob Dole old), Democrat, Republican. The Green Party laughs like rabid hyenas at the 'LOUNGE-ZILLA!' show! And even the Christian Conservatives eat this crap up! Contrary to what you've heard, we happen to know that those Bible-belters really know how to throw a party! LOUNGE-ZILLA! is hilarious, bawdy and rude -- it's an 'everyone can play' show -- just come ready for some good, clean, naughty, rude fun! Okay, maybe 'clean' is pushing it a little. But naughty and rude fun are definitely in store!

Nuff said! Go see LOUNGE-ZILLA or hear about afterwards and wish you had seen it yourself.