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arts & entertainment
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with special guesk TiMarimetta ram an,o Tie Moitor ttky lions
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Stand-Up
Gal
egrees
Huladog
Ann Arbor Summer
Festival lineup
includes Ophira
Eisenberg of NPR's
Ask Me Another.
sATuRDAYJUNE 14 10:00PM cL,
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The Michele Ramo
World Music Ensemble
featuring
Heidi Hepler 1
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PM
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the Rose City
Soul Brothers I 3:30p
.; •
Beatriz Pichi Malen I 5pm
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Visit theJEWISHNEWS.com
JN
I
Suzanne Chessler
Contributing Writer
0
phira Eisenberg, who hosts
NPR's Ask Me Another, will
record a broadcast during the
Ann Arbor Summer Festival.
When she takes the stage — at 8 p.m.
Thursday, June 26, in the Power Center
— there will be trivia questions, music
with house musician Jonathan Coulton
and sketch comedy.
In the 31st season of the festival,
scheduled June 13-July 6, the enter-
tainer will be among many mainstage
performers, such as Lily Tomlin, the
Spanish Harlem Orchestra and the
Capitol Steps. There also will be local
entertainers and movies to be seen in
free programs.
Eisenberg, author of Screw Everyone:
Sleeping My Way to Monogamy, can be
heard on Michigan Radio (91.7 FM).
She took time from her Paris vaca-
tion to answer questions for the Jewish
News:
JN: What do you have planned for
your appearance in Ann Arbor?
OE: The real question is: What does
Ann Arbor have planned for me? It'll
be my first time there, and I've heard so
many great things about it.
When I lived in Montreal, a lot of
University of Michigan students would
come up there or to Quebec in general
because the drinking age was a little
younger. We always thought they were
more sophisticated than we were.
I have two very close friends in New
York from Michigan. Perhaps I'm just
drawn to down-to-earth yet brainy types.
I look forward to a city full of them.
JN: When did you know you wanted
to be an entertainer, and how did you
pursue that through training and
work?
OE: I didn't start pursuing standup
until I was a couple of years out of
university. I got a degree in cultural
anthropology, which my parents will
tell you made them laugh until they
cried, but I had a hard time admitting
to myself that I wanted to take a shot at
standup.
I think part of me understood how
Ophira Eisenberg
hard it would be, and the only way to
do standup is to do standup. I went up
night after night, year after year, until I
got good.
JN: How would you describe your
approach to comedy?
OE: My style is autobiographical. I
stick pretty close to real life for my top-
ics and tend to weave storytelling into
my act as much as possible.
JN: Do you think you're funny off
stage?
OE: I think I'm pleasant off stage. I
like joking around with my close friend
and comic originally from Michigan,
Susan Prekel. When I'm off stage, I
don't feel the need to go out of my way
to make someone laugh, but if it hap-
pens naturally, that's great!
JN: How is your work time divided?
OE: I just work all the time. During
the day, I organize and hustle and keep
things in motion. In the night, I go up
on stage. My husband reminds me it's
important to take time off to reboot.
JN: What is your husband's name, and
what career path has he followed?
OE: My husband, Jonathan Baylis,
is a senior writer-producer at USA
Network.
JN: How has Judaism entered into
your outlook?
OE: I never think of my act as par-
ticularly Jewish, but I do make fun of
my very Israeli name and mention cul-
turally Jewish things.
There have been many times after
shows when people have approached
me to say they could really relate
because they're also Jewish. It always
catches me off guard, but I take it as a
compliment.
❑
Ophira Eisenberg will appear as
part of NPR's Ask Me Another at
8 p.m. Thursday, June 26, at the
Power Center,121 Fletcher, in Ann
Arbor. $25-$35. For complete fes-
tival (June 13-July 6) information,
call (734) 764-2538 or go to A2SF.
org .