Triple Espresso is a comedy show about three men’s search for fame, which ends in disaster on national television. Butternut, a musician, Maxwell, a magician, and Bean, an entertainer, allow the audience to relive their backwards climb down the ladder of success.
The campus Activities Board (CAB)will bring students to Triple Espresso, a comedy show in Minneapolis on Dec. 10 at 8:00 p.m.
CAB will be selling tickets beginning at 7:30 a.m. on Thursday, Nov. 18. One Dec. 10 transportantion will leave from three flags at 6:00 p.m. for the show.The show will run about two hours and 10 minutes. “CAB has never gone to see Triple Espresso before, so we are excited to see the reaction from the students who attend,” sophomore Katie Batz, a member of CAB, said.
Despite this being the first time CAB has gone to the show, anticipation that it will be well received is high, especially judging from the reactions of students who have seen the show in the past. Students who have seen the show say that it is an event that is not to be missed. “Triple Espresso is unique and like no comedy show I’ve ever seen before. It was well worth it and we had so much fun,” First-Year Elizabeth Johnson said. ”I have personally seen it twice, and it is definitely one of the funniest shows I have seen!” Batz said.
The show originated in Minneapolis at the Music Box Theatre in the spring of 1997 and returns to the same location this winter. Triple Espresso has been all around the United States and the world, including Ireland, England, Belgium and Germany. In the last 14 years, Triple Espresso has been seen by over 1.7 million people in 45 cities, six countries and three languages (English, German and Flemish).
The three characters, Hugh Butternut, Buzz Maxwell and Bobby Bean, are played by over 30 different actors in various places around the country and the world.
Robert O. Berdahl, who has played Hugh Butternut, graduated from Gustavus with a B.A. in Theatre. The actors in the show are highly accomplished in the acting world, having had roles in movies such as Catch Me if You Can, Drop Dead Fred and Jingle All the Way. Actors from the show have also held a number of television roles, on the shows Veronica Mars, Malcolm in the Middle, Just Shoot Me, My Name is Earl and many more. Actors have even been members of the world famous Second City, and Christopher Hart, who played Buzz Maxwell, appeared in the Addams Family movies as Thing, the disembodied hand.
Junior Peter Michaletz appreciates the talent in the show. “The show has been around for years, so the talent is well refined, and the show flows smoothly,” he said.
The show is not only funny, but clean, containing no profanity or innuendos. The Triple Espresso website advertises that “Triple Espresso is recommended for ages 6-106!”
First-year Madison Heckel said, “Triple Espresso was such a fun show! It’s such a different branch of comedy than the standard stand-up comedian. I would recommend it for people of all brands of humor.”
Campus Activities Board chose to go to Triple Espresso because of its rave reviews, as well as students expressing interest in it. CAB does a number of events like this one, which include tickets and transportation to and from the location. Some recent events include the play Thrill Me and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part One. “Our trips to Minneapolis shows have always proven to be very successful, so we knew that we wanted to continue going to see them,” Batz said.
Michaletz said that the key to success for shows like this one is the advertising, which CAB works very hard on. “Chris Duhaime does a wonderful job making posters, and placement of posters at key locations throughout campus is important. CAB also works extensively with Facebook, which is an effective way of reaching a large number of Gusties while saving time, energy and especially paper,” he said.
Anyone interested in more information about Triple Espresso can visit their website.