Out comedians will take on straight culture at City Winery

Out comedians Sam Taggart and George Civeris lovingly skewer heterosexuality and NPR culture on “StraightioLab,” their popular podcast for the Big Money Players network. This summer, the duo are taking their act on the road, with a multi-city tour of the United States and Canada. “StraightioLab: The Lab Leak Tour” lands in Philadelphia on Aug. 17, with a one-night engagement at City Winery in the Fashion District.

Each week on the podcast, Taggart, Civeris and a rotating guest break down what makes a particular topic “straight.” From maps to mayonnaise, dating shows to dairy, the conversations have provided a humorous queer lens through which to consider the macroculture. 

Since debuting in 2020, some of the biggest names in the contemporary alt-queer comedy scene have provided their voices. Past guests include Bowen Yang, Matt Rogers, Joel Kim Booster, Ayo Edeberi and Patti Harrison, as well as cultural figures like celebrity chef Alison Roman and Pulitzer Prize–winning book critic Andrea Long Chu. Twice a year, Taggart and Civeris also host an “Earnestness Bonanza,” where they answer listener questions with genuine sincerity.

In true jokester fashion, Taggart has lofty ambitions for the tour. 

“The audience is going to see a mirror, and they’re going to see themselves reflected, and they’re going to take a good hard look in it in order to change their ways,” he said with a laugh during a recent interview. “We’re taking Puritan society and we’re making it sex-positive, kink friendly, well read. We’re ready to change America, quite frankly.”

In all seriousness, though, the tour will connect Taggart and Civeris with their network of fans across the country, and they hope to highlight the homegrown comedy scene wherever they play.

“We’re hoping to get local comics in each city to be part of the performance,” said Civeris. “We’ve only done live shows in New York and LA. Each live show is usually divided into three parts, with a different guest for each. I don’t know if we are going to do all three parts at each show, but I think it will be really fun to have the locals on and meet new people. We have our go-to people in New York and LA, and especially because of the pandemic, we haven’t been traveling a lot [for stand-up]. I haven’t done a big out-of-town show for a while, so I know that’s something we’re very excited about.”

Both Taggart and Civeris have expressed their admiration for Philly on the podcast, and are excited for the upcoming StraightioLab debut in the city. 

“I am obsessed with Philly,” Taggart said. “I have been to Philly a total of four times, but every time I’ve been, I’ve had so much fun. I actually love the gay bars there — they remind me of when I first turned 21 and was living in Chicago, where the gay bars were a little more wholesome than they are in New York City. I also love the little cute streets. There’s something about Philly that’s always felt approachable to me. It’s a cosmic connection.”

Civeris mentioned that he played his last gig prior to the pandemic at Good Good Comedy Theatre, the much-missed Chinatown venue that acted as a haven for alternative comedy in the mid-to-late 2010s. 

“There was something about it that immediately felt like home,” he said. “I remember that there was a host and two openers, all Philly-based people, and they were all so nice. There was someone in the audience who just DM’d me to get a drink after, and we still keep in touch. It’s a good comedy town. I feel like every time I’m there for comedy, I’m only there for less than 24 hours. I would like to actually spend a few days and explore the city.”

In terms of podcast material, Taggart and Civeris copped to some favorite topics throughout the series’ history. Civeris cited “overhead lighting,” which was proposed by guest Claire Carusillo. The comedian called it “the platonic ideal of a straight topic — just outside the box enough that it’s funny, but you really can make an argument that it’s straight.”

“I’m sort of addicted to the obvious topics,” Taggart countered. “I almost wish people would do more of them, because there is something there. But I think one of my favorite topics was when Ayo Edeberi did ‘whiteness,’ because comedically it was very interesting for us to try to do. We’re playing these characters, playing ourselves pretending that we don’t understand that we’re white because we’re [also] gay. To play with that comedically was exciting and also very rare.”

Taggart expressed surprise that no one has brought in “yard work” as a topic yet. 

“But not gardening, obviously,” he said. “Mowing the grass, picking the weeds, but not in the garden!”

Whatever the ultimate topic, Taggart and Civeris will bring a dose of straight culture mixed with queer sensibility to Philly this summer, and that’s something we can all laugh about.

StraightioLab Live Podcast plays City Winery, 990 Filbert St., on Aug. 17 at 7:30 pm. For tickets and information, visit citywinery.com/philadelphia.