You Got Left

“I didn’t start at the bottom and now I’m here,” Collin explains. “If anything, I started at the top and worked my way down.”

Of course, it took a lot to get from point A to point B, and we heard all about it in the comedian’s full length comedy special, You Got Left, part of the Speak Up, Rise Up festival this week at The Tank.

Ahri Findling opened the show, warming up the crowd by complaining that he can’t handle another visit from people who don’t live in New York (“The High Line is not The Great Wall of China!”) and reminding us that—at least as an adolescent—nobody should teach you how to masturbate.

Laughter filled the room before Collin even hit the stage.

Backtracking for just a moment: we’re used to attending shows—especially at The Tank—where many of the people in the audience know each other, but so many of Collin’s fans and supporters showed up for this one that we felt a bit like we’d crashed a stranger’s wedding reception at a bar in Murray Hill, with people greeting each other and catching up during the short time before the lights went down.

Clearly, Collin has established quite a following, and they filled the theater to hear about the time his brothers and best friend cornered him for an intervention about his addiction to… being lazy!

And the time a guy (who pretended to be an ex-Navy Seal) stabbed him while wearing a bulletproof vest that turned out not to be knife-proof.

As he was rushed to the hospital, Collin couldn’t help but notice that he was bleeding to death in an awesome Jeep Wrangler.

There’s a lot more to laugh about in Collin’s life story, which he dubbed “a show about [Jewish] privilege.”

So much, in fact, that he ran out of time telling it all.

“I’m gonna be way over,” he warned near the end, “so I’ll give you the Cliff Notes. I didn’t think it would take me this long. What could I have cut?”

Thankfully, he didn’t cut any of it—including the explanation of two drinking games: “Ur-lach-er” and “You Got Left,” from which the show received its title.

But we’re not gonna reveal the details, because Collin’s story will surely be told again.

Unfortunately, however, you can’t catch it during the festival, because—like most of the shows in Speak Up, Rise Up—it only appears once on the schedule.

The good news is: there are plenty of other shows in the festival between now and it’s conclusion this Sunday.

So check out the lineup, check out a few shows, then come back and tell us about your experiences!

Your reviews help others decide if Speak Up, Rise Up is right for them, and your ratings help us help you find future performances you’re sure to love!