Stand-up comedy group Riverside Comedy hopes to foster comedy scene in Cape Girardeau

The half-dozen comics haunting Ragsdales on Wednesday nights make up most of the Riverside Comedy stand-up group.

This past Wednesday, they were waiting for Tom Cook, the night's emcee, to come back from the toilet.

"It's just his hopes and dreams," Harold Williams said.

Williams, one of the comics, also works at Ragsdales and was one of the main figures in getting the group started.

Riverside Comedy isn't affiliated with Ragsdales, 132 N Main St. in downtown Cape Girardeau, but the group coalesced around the weekly open mics.

Members of the Riverside Comedy stand-up group from left to right, Audra Novak, Richard Cason, Thor Harter, Tom Cook, KeyV Williams and Landon Hill, pose for a photo Thursday night at Ragsdales in downtown Cape Girardeau.Laura Simon

"They grew, and they started wanting to do shows prime time, so to speak," Williams said.

Now they're booking comedy shows, with the next one Oct. 22.

Stand-up Audra Novak said trying her hand at comedy was a New Year's resolution she finally got around to in June when a friend invited her to go watch the open-mic show.

"I wasn't going to go up at first," she said.

But, with a degree in theater, Novak has performed before and decided to give it a shot.

"It went really well," she said. "From what I remember of it."

It was a stress blackout, she swears.

The key, she said, is honesty.

"Self-deprecation, usually," she said. "I tell stories, kind of like, 'This happened to me, and it's -- sad. But funny, too."

Tinder, she said, is great for stuff like that.

But they're not all new to the game; Richard Cason has been doing stand-up for almost 20 years.

"I grew up in the '80s, when stand-up was on TV," he said. "I kind of didn't feel like I fit in as a kid anyway, so I thought this might have been a viable option."

He's done stand-up in Los Angeles and has been a paid act since 2004.

Their overall goal is to foster a comedy scene in Cape Girardeau, Cook said, and comedy-only shows are the next step in that direction.

"When you're just in a bar, you just gotta win 'em over," he said. "There's going to be distractions, and some people are just going to want to play pool or play darts, but at a comedy show, there are no distractions. You know what to expect, and you get what you pay for."

Added Cason, "Cape's [comedy community] is super new. They're just getting their legs, but they're eager to jump in and try something new. There's something special about starting one just from scratch."

Part of that, too, is connecting with comics in other areas, such as Michael Yetman, who headlined Wednesday's open mic.

A Cape Girardeau native, Yetman now lives in Columbia, Missouri, and has worked with big-name acts such as Doug Stanhope, Kyle Kinane and TJ Miller.

"I think it's great what they're doing here," he said. "They're working!"

"Yeah, he gives us street cred," Williams said.

Their next show is Oct. 22 at Paddlewheel Pizza and Subs, 127 N. Water St. in downtown Cape Girardeau. Tickets are $5 in advance and $8 at the door.

tgraef@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3627

Pertinent address:

132 N. Main St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.

127 N. Water St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.