Alex Edelman: Just for Us

I approached this show knowing nothing about Edelman and not expecting anything above the mediocre standup norm. I found myself laughing like I was listening to Robin Williams. I'm not saying that he's as funny as Williams, but he's funnier than anyone else I remember hearing in years.

Like Williams, whose name he drops more than once, Edelman presents as manic and on the spectrum. But in fact his act is extremely focused and disciplined. He conjures up a scene and a cast of characters, and his apparently manic movements around the stage are artfully choreographed to that end. He strikes me as a true original, not as anyone's clone. As a reviewer once wrote of S. J. Perelman, just before they made him they broke the mold.