CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Dominic Syracuse is returning home to his hometown, Cheyenne, to perform two live tapings of his comedy special on the evening of Friday, March 6th at the Historic Atlas Theater and it’s clear that he could not be more excited.
“It has always been a dream of mine to come back to Cheyenne and to put on a show like this. It has been something that I’ve thought and dreamed about since I was eight years old. I kept thinking about how great would it be to come back and do this in Wyoming?” Syracuse said when asked about how it felt to be returning to the town where he first cut his teeth on stage years ago.
His stand up comedy special is being hosted by Blue Pig Presents and will also feature the comedy of another homegrown talent, Hannah Deleeuw.
A born entertainer, Syracuse recalled fondly on how his journey as a performance artist began on the stage of The Cheyenne Little Theatre many years ago as child when he played a role in the play Ramona Quimby.
“I played Howie, and he was Romona’s silly best friend. And all I remember about the show was that she had this big monologue to the crowd at the end of the play. And she does done she walks off stage and leaves her lunchbox at the side of the stage. I had to come out and eat a ding dong from her lunchbox every night. And every night I did it, the crowd would just bust up like crazy. I remember thinking that this is the best job anybody could ever have!” Syracuse laughed.
Syracuse, who is currently based out of Los Angeles, is not your typical performer. He is a jack-of-all-trades artist whose journey to becoming a standup comic didn’t happen all at once. His crosscountry resume includes a stints of being in a band, working as a radio deejay, studying acting at both the Steppenwolf Company in Chicago and at the Stella Adler Acting and Theatre Academy in Los Angeles.
He currently spends his days playing guitar, creating hilarious YouTube videos and teaching prison inmates anger management through acting, It has only been in the last year that Syracuse has added stand up comedy to his already impressive list of skills.
When asked about the beginning of his standup career Syracuse laughed and said “I started doing open mics. And what I didn’t know at the time was that open mics were just a place go and suck.”
Syracuse explained how courage and hard work it takes to be a standup comic.
“At first it was terrifying because standup comedy is the only art form where you can objectively fail. If you play a song or act in a play and nobody likes it you can just say ‘Oh they didn’t get it’ or “The writing sucked.’ or ‘Whatever excuse you could hide behind.’ But in order to succeed as a comic you have to make people laugh. You either do it or you don’t,” he said.
“With stand up it’s as naked and raw as you can be.”
As time went on Syracuse used those open mic nights as a chance to develop his craft and to and connect with other comics which have lead him to a lot of open doors.
It’s safe to say that over the past year he has put in the work. With the assistance of his younger brother, Anthony, who films his sets, Dominic has worked tirelessly to get his comedy sets to be just right.
Syracuse calls his brother his “secret weapon”.
After every performance the two brothers go over the performances to see what can be tighten up and improved on. Syracuse said that he goes over and over his bits to make sure that they are just right.
“You have to work your butt off,” he admitted.
It’s his work ethic over the last year that led Syracuse to going from only getting a few minutes on stage to being a headliner at various comedy clubs in and around LA.
Now, Syracuse cannot wait to come back home to Cheyenne and to use it as a”launching point” for his comedy with two live stand up shows being taped in one evening.
“It feels my journey is now just getting started,” Syracuse said with an infectious energy in his voice. “The 30 years leading up to this was just preparing me for this. To be able to perform in front of large audiences on a regular basis is what I’ve been working for. And now to be able to perform in front of all of my family and people that I have grown up with feels like the perfect launching point.”
When asked about what his show will be about Syracuse said that “The comedy special is going to very much be about growing up in Cheyenne and then moving to a big city and the stories that have happened to me. But it’s also going to be about the long and and arduous journey I have been on for my story to just begin.”
While it’s evident that Dominic Syracuse has come a long way from his days on the stage of The Cheyenne Little Theater there is one thing that hasn’t changed:
His ability to make audiences laugh.
The details for his stand up comedy specials are as follows:
Dominic Syracuse LIVE Stand Up Comedy Taping
(Featuring Hannah Deleeuw)
hosted by Blue Pig Presents
March 6th @ The Histotic Atlas Theatre (Located at 211 W Lincolnway)
7 p.m. will be an all ages show
9 p.m. is adults only
Ticket information and purchasing can found here.
For more information on the the comedy of Dominic Syracuse you are encourage to visit his YouTube channel.
