May 5, 2001    

"The Elevated" refers to the el passing by The Cue Club and interrupting the performers every few minutes.

It also refers to the elevated state of comedy there, according to host Cayne Collier, a fixture on the Chicago underground comedy scene. Collier launched the room last summer in response to what he sees as a homogenous and boring comedy scene in the city and on TV. He based The Elevated on a similar program run by comic Tom Tenney at The Cue Club before his departure last summer. Tenney, who moved to New York, had been featured in a New York Times story on alternative comedy.

"We're taking comedy to a higher level," Collier said. "The point is to make it a more open form so people can relax. It's been the same thing for so long - now it's time to change."

The Elevated has been the launching pad for many of the comedians in the small but emerging Chicago alternative comedy scene. These performers include the video team My Shins, led by Willy Lazslo, whose subjects include a hairy monster who lurks under golf courses and a hapless hockey-mask-wearing murderer; the duo The Caterpillars, who sing, talk about the minutae of their lives and use oatmeal and Ramen noodles as musical instruments; and the comedians Dave Sparks, Henry Scott, Bridget Smith and Jay Suko.

By Kari Lydersen