Guarnaschelli is the latest culinary star to go live
Already with a restaurant, cookbook, and plenty of television appearances under her belt, Alex Guarnaschelli is taking the next logical step for the modern celebrity chef: She's heading to the stage. Guarnaschelli will appear live at Guild Hall in East Hampton, N.Y., on August 5, reports Hamptons Magazine. She'll be joined by comedians Judy Gold, Karen Bergreen, and Yamaneika Saunders, and she plans to deliver a standup routine of her own.
"I realized in the past couple of years that the kitchen on any given evening during dinner service is really the same as an improv comedy show," the Chopped judge and Iron Chef told Hamptons. Firing dishes to order, entertaining guests, and accepting almost instant feedback are all things restaurant staff deal with daily, so she has a point. She'll reportedly deliver a set called "Busting My Chops," with material heavily based on her culinary background.
Guarnaschelli's foray into the world of paid live appearances follows an increasingly popular trend for kitchen professionals who have become household names. After years of success on TV, Anthony Bourdain has become a mainstay on the road. His first live tour, dubbed "Close to the Bone," was a hit in the summer of 2015 and covered 10 cities. Bourdain is following that up with "The Hunger" tour, which will make stops in 15 cities this fall. Alton Brown is another famous food person who has made the jump from the small screen to the stage. The former Good Eats host has a few tours to his name now, most recently "Eat Your Science," which covered a whopping 40 cities.
It isn't enough for the food-obsessed to simply dine at their favorite chefs' restaurants, read their cookbooks, and watch their television shows. Now, witnessing them in the flesh is a fan's desire. It's a strange development for the profession, and cements these chefs' celebrity status.
"Chefs are thought of as these unusual, kind of alien creatures — and we are — but the truth of the matter is there's a universal funny in feeling like you're not completely prepared for dinner service," Guarnaschelli told Hamptons," or that you may have a great dinner service but your love life is in a complete shambles because you spent the last 10 days fileting fish and not socializing."
• Chef Alex Guarnaschelli on Making Moves into Comedy [HM]
• Anthony Bourdain's Next Live Tour to Hit 15 Cities This Fall [E]
• Alton Brown Announces New Live Tour: 'Eat Your Science' [E]
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