Interview with Rory Scovel

It's time to check in with a local favorite. You've seen him all over the DC area performing. And then you haven't seen him for a while.

He's a Stand-Up. No! An Improvist! No! A Stand-Up! That's right, he's both. And who is the local rising young star? None other than Rory Scovel. Rory started local, has toured around some, and is now taking the Big Apple by storm. We caught up with Rory and found out what he has been up to since last year.

dccf: Hey Rory, Thanks for taking a few minutes to answer a few questions. Sure you are from DC, but people have questions. What have you been up to lately?

Rory: Things have been pretty hectic lately. My girlfriend and I recently moved to Hoboken, NJ to pursue our entertainment dreams. We've been playing in NYC and trying to get some stage time. She was recently cast in 2 productions and I have been doing any standup show I can get on.

dccf: We understand you spent a lot of time in Canada and other northern places last fall. Were you hiding from the police or was it something comedy related that took you out of town for a while?

Rory: I did a yuk yuks comedy tour through western Canada. I was fortunate enough to get a booking with Yuk Yuks through Dave Moroz at Aspen Talent and couldn't see myself turning down the offer. It landed me the opportunity to meet great comics in Seattle, Washington as well, which is what landed me a spot in the 2006 Seattle Comedy Competition.

dccf: Any way people can check out parts of your adventures from last fall?

Rory: On my website (www.roryscovel.com) I have the 17 minute set I performed the very last night of the seattle competition and also a new documentary that I'm working on. The doc is about myself and a few comics and what performing comedy means to us and what effect it has on our outlook on life. We all have different opinions but one bond, we love performing.

dccf: Your website mentions that you have "infectious stage presence". Has this been reported to the Center for Disease Control and what are the symptoms?

Rory: It has been reported and they told me to F off, which I thought was a little immature. Since that day I've been trying to bring down the Center for Disease Control. Everyone has a platform, this one is mine.

dccf: You just finished taping for Live at Gotham. Can you tell us what that was like and where and when we can expect to check that out?

Rory: It was an amazing experience. I never pictured myself getting such an opportunity so the entire weekend was overwhelming. The experience overall was great. All the comics that were taping that weekend were really cool and the actual show itself was more fun than I can describe. I was very nervous prior to my set but then realized the audience was very much on the performers sides. I think the show airs sometime in May or June. i haven't been fully informed but heard that info from a small white rabbit. hahahahaha, see how funny I am?

dccf: Why are we under the impression that you can help us with the purchase of an HDTV?

Rory: I taped a commercial for Circuit City a year and a half ago or something like that. Thanks to my buddy and improv partner Tyler Korba I was given the chance to audition for the shoot. Tyler works with Discovery Channel and they were hired to shoot the commercial. That experience was really cool as well. I'm just glad they were able to find something I said on tape usable. I don't see myself as much of an actor.

dccf: What was the strangest review that you've ever received after a show?

Rory: Hmmmmm. I'm not sure. I don't get reviewed very often. I was told that there was someone in the audience this past christmas in Greenville, SC who found my set to be super cheesy. Nothing pisses me off more than not knowing who that person is so I can ask them why they think that.

dccf: What was the 2006 Seattle International Comedy Competition experience like for you?

Rory: It was a really cool one. I was able to meet a lot of great comics that were competiting who have dropped my name to many people and helped me get random stagetime and attention. Comics help comics more than anyone else and that competition was a great way to meet more comics. I also was given the chance to spend a month in Seattle, a city I have now grown to love more than most. If you haven't visited Seattle, do so. The comedy here is incredible, the scene is thriving and the overall energy in the city is very creative and artistic.

dccf: Now that you are a full time stand-up comic, will audiences who know you from the various improv shows still be able to see you perform some improv?

Rory: Dr. Fantastic will be performing improv at the DC comedyfest this year. If you know anything about Dr. F, you know that we are the greatest improv troupe in the history of time and even before time was invented. This show will see the return of Dr. F cofounder Zhubin Parang. He is a "lawyer" now in NYC and has missed a few Dr. F performance opportunities. It will be fun to play with him again. I use quotations because lawyer stands for drug dealer in the big apple.

dccf: Anything you want us to make sure dccomedyfest blog readers know about before coming to see you at the fest?

Rory: I love money. Bring some money and just hurl it at me while on stage. I love pretending I'm in "showgirls" also. I use quotations because showgirls stands for "Zhubin's living room buying drugs."

Don't miss your chance to catch Rory at the fest. You'll then be able to say you saw Rory before the he "Made It Big". And by "Made It Big" we mean "Made It Big".