As seen in Asheville Scene, Friday Oct. 14, 2022
Writer, actor and comedian Robert Dubac calls his production, “The Book of Moron,” the funniest show you’ll ever think at. Alternatively, he says, it’s the smartest show you’ll ever laugh at — whichever sounds more appealing.
In fact, he’s willing to bet that his unique brand of stand-up-meets-live-theater falls right in line with Asheville audiences’ humor.
“So much of comedy is driven by an adolescent, mostly male audience — and, because of that, you have all these comedians regurgitating the same (mostly crude-humor, shock-value) jokes night after night,” Dubac said. “But what happens when that generation of people grows up? Are they still going to want to go get drunk at a comedy club and listen to a guy tell d–-ck jokes?”
Probably not. And that’s why Dubac created something different.
“It’s just hard to get people to think and laugh at the same time, especially under the constraints of a comedy club,” he explained. “But I had a background in drama and theater and acting, so while all my roommates were auditioning for ‘Saturday Night Live,’ I veered off into making people laugh in a theater instead.” (His former roommates, Dana Carvey, David Spade and Kevin Nealon, joined the cast at ‘SNL.’)
“The Book of Moron” follows Dubac, the show’s main character, on a journey through his own mind. Having suffered a traumatic accident that left him stuck in a coma, the comedian must listen to his five inner voices — his voice of reason, his voice of common sense, his inner moron, his inner child and his inner a–hole — to wake up.
Unfortunately for him, “he’s in a coma of stupidity,” Dubac said, laughing. “He’s been bombarded by ‘alternative facts’ and hype and spin and all the crazy things you can find on the internet. All this damage has been done, but maybe if he starts from scratch, if he doesn’t remember anything at all, he’ll find the truth to life. Through humor, we can discern the truth in everything.”
Though his character starts off with nothing, with help from his inner voices, he’s able to sift through the static — weeding out the stupidity — to figure out what’s actually important: Who he is.
Dubac’s Oct. 15 shows at the Wortham Center for the Performing Arts is not the comedian’s first time performing in Asheville, though it is a first for “The Book of Moron,” specifically.
“It’s a great show for Asheville, because it’s smarter than what you’d expect,” he said. “It’s also very relevant. It speaks to everybody’s concerns over all the dissonance and disruption that’s going on. It tackles all these issues that we are stressed about with something that makes you laugh. And laughter is really the saving grace right now.”
IF YOU GO
WHAT: Robert Dubac’s “The Book of Moron”
WHEN: 3 p.m. & 8 p.m. Oct. 15
WHERE: Wortham Center for the Performing Arts, 18 Biltmore Ave., downtown Asheville
TICKETS: $38 at worthamarts.org/events/the-book-of-moron
