Charlotte Squawks kicks off its third decade of parody

BLUMENTHAL ARTS

Blumenthal Arts presents “Charlotte Squawks: Hold My Beer,” a roast of the Queen City with satire, sketches and musical parody, through June 28 at Booth Playhouse.

Charlotte is getting roasted for the 21st year. 

“Charlotte Squawks: Hold My Beer” is returning at Booth Playhouse, 130 N. Tryon St., June 4-28. The Charlotte roast will feature satirical commentary, musical parodies and sketch comedy focusing on local and national events. Tickets start at $39.76 and can be purchased at blumenthalarts.org. 

Co-creators Mike Collins and Brian Kahn originally started “Charlotte Squawks” as a fundraiser on local television. The production was later picked up by Blumenthal Arts, where it grew into what it is today. 

“We reprised it two more times as a fundraiser, but they found that we weren’t very good at raising money because we (upset) all the sponsors,” Kahn said. “But people seemed to enjoy it, so Blumenthal took us on,” Kahn said. 

Described as having a “Saturday Night Live” feel, the production will have a mix of local talent, visuals and satirical commentary on the Charlotte experience. 

“We’ve got so many great actors that have been with our show for a huge number of years,” Kahn said. “In fact, we have a couple that have been with us since the very beginning. That allows a lot of collaborative creative workflow of ideas back and forth, which has been really a lot of fun.” 

As the city continues to grow and change, “Charlotte Squawks”’ creative process evolves, sometimes leading up to opening night. The goal is to keep the material fresh and relevant. 

“We start rehearsing the beginning of April,” Kahn said. “The actors start to learn the lines. There’s a lot of changes. It's a very fluid show. Who knows what’s going to happen, whether we’re going to have an interim mayor by the middle of the show.” 

The program has never been afraid to push boundaries. Kahn said that although the show is packed with satire, the goal is to get people to think. 

“With politics, obviously things have gotten more tense and contentious nationally,” he said. “But we don’t pull punches and I think there may be people that don't love some of the stuff we do or say and they can go see ‘Mamma Mia!’ I do think there is a place for creating a conversation around a topic or an issue.” 

The show brings together audiences to poke fun at the city while giving Charlotteans an opportunity to bond over shared experiences, from the fear of Exit 3A to reopening Club West.

“It’s more of an experience that sort of creates bonds between audience members and friends that make an annual tradition, and I think that's really cool,” Kahn said.

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