Anger Management, the longest-running comedy event in northern Arizona, featured California-based comedian Daniel Eachus as the headlining act on Jan. 15 at the Orpheum Theater, with local stand-up entertainers as openers.
A phone on a tripod records comedian Jamie Anderson’s set during the Anger Management comedy show at the Orpheum Theater, Jan. 15. Caiden Snyder/The Lumberjack
Local comics Matt Santos, Justin Tietjen, Jamie “JC” Anderson and special guest Jhovan Limones warmed up the crowd before Eachus closed out the night with his set.
Eachus briefly spoke about how he got into comedy before performing his routine for a packed audience in the main lobby of the Orpheum.
“I grew up in a place where, at the time at least, there was no stand-up scene,” Eachus said. “My very first show was in a friend’s backyard, and I did 45 minutes because I thought that’s what comedians do.”
Growing up in Fresno, California, the earliest exposure Eachus had to comedy was primarily in movies or shows like “The Simpsons,” “Looney Tunes” or “PeeWee’s Big Adventure,” sparking his interest in writing jokes.
While traditional comedy writing played a role in attracting him to the field, Eachus said most of his joke-writing process today is observational.
Matt Santos performs on stage during the Anger Management comedy show at the Orpheum Theater, Jan. 15. Caiden Snyder/The Lumberjack
“I’m like a madman with notes, I have audio phone notes, written phone notes, journals, everything,” Eachus said. “And sometimes I’ll just skim through them and be like, ‘Oh, that was a funny one,’ which just comes from life, I guess.”
Eachus currently has performances scheduled for January and February, with tour stops in Arizona, Nevada and California.
Earlier in the night, local comedian Tietjen opened the show, riffing in a signature stand-up style revolving around his challenges as a disabled person.
“This one girl was like, ‘Hey, we should go to an escape room,” Tietjen said to the crowd. “I go, ‘I got trouble getting out of my own room, what makes you think I want to increase the difficulty?’ When you have a disability, every room becomes an escape room.”
Comedian Jamie Anderson performing on stage during the Anger Management comedy show at the Orpheum Theater, Jan. 15. Caiden Snyder/The Lumberjack
Tietjen was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy at a young age, leaving him unable to climb steps or undergo strenuous activity without assistance or great difficulty.
Despite his condition, Tietjen said stand-up comedy makes him and others smile, and makes him feel alive in the process. He also said, as far as other comedians who inspire him, he appreciates anyone who can be natural and authentic on stage.
“I feel like a lot of times comedians get on stage and they either get nervous or they get lost in the moment or their material,” Tietjen said. “And they speed up, or they do something they think the audience wants to hear. But when you do stand-up, that’s not really what you want to do. You want to be yourself, which is kind of the hardest thing to do.”
Comedian Jamie Anderson reaches toward the crowd in a gesture while he delivers a joke during the Anger Management comedy show at the Orpheum Theater, Jan. 15. Caiden Snyder/The Lumberjack
Anderson, a comedian and producer for the show, said he started Anger Management around 15 years ago, and for most of the year, they run monthly stand-up events at the Orpheum.
Anderson started working in the entertainment industry in the early 2000s, first on a cable access show that he created called “Local Idiots,” and later as a professional wrestler.
“While I was doing pro wrestling, people kept commenting how funny I was, and how I should do stand-up comedy,” Anderson said. “And I was like, I don’t know if I should do stand-up. That just seemed so hard. So, I went and did a three-minute spot at a comedy club in Scottsdale and just crushed it. I was like, ‘This is natural for me.’ ‘I’m so awesome.’ And then came back and did five minutes and just sucked so bad.”
Despite initial hurdles, those three minutes proved to be the hook that would keep Anderson in the comedy world for the next 20 years of his life.
Audience members smile and watch as comedians perform their sets during the Anger Management comedy show at the Orpheum Theater, Jan. 15. Caiden Snyder/The Lumberjack
Anderson said starting the Anger Management show at the Orpheum gave him a place to grow as a comedian and producer, and he wants to continue that by giving opportunities to younger comedians trying to break into the business.
“I think it’s taken off to where comedy is starting to become more of a focal point for Flagstaff,” Anderson said. “To the point where we have a local group of kids who do open mic shows on a consistent basis. Trying to build a comedy scene with locals is hard, but now it seems like it’s starting to take off.”
Anderson said Anger Management will be on break until March, due to travel concerns for comedians coming from out of state, after which monthly shows at the Orpheum will pick back up for the rest of the year.
