How it’s New York: Shane regularly plays New York shows.
How it’s Irish: The comic is a native of Galway.
He’s not the first. Comic from another country, that is, in New York. He’s not even the first Irish one, to have given it a lash, as it were, in this, one of the most exciting cities in the world. I say ‘one of’, as I’ve not been to all the others. We hear Melbourne, Stockholm and even Doncaster, have their moments. New York City though, an apple so big, so vast, so ravenous, that it’s consumed many a talent, Irish or otherwise, and heartlessly, unforgivingly, chewed them up, and thrown them back, scaring off the next brave soul to attempt to emerge victorious. It’s one of those cities though, it draws you in. Mr. Sinatra famously crooned that if you made it there, you’d; ‘Make it anywhere’. He may well have gotten it right. Shane Cunningham may well ‘make it’, here, or, indeed, anywhere. The young Irishman, by now having not only performed on both of Ireland’s coasts (yes, we’ve more than one over there), but on either side of the US too, is one of those talents that you think Frank may well have been singing about. An extraordinarily upbeat performer, the award-winning Shane has appeared on stages all over Ireland. He’s made them laugh at the renowned Vicar Street venue in Dublin (noted for hosting shows by music heavyweights Neil Young, Paul Simon, Bob Dylan, as well as comedic stars Tommy Tiernan, Dylan Moran and Des Bishop), The Stand and Greene Room clubs in New York, in pantomime in Galway, toured with Irish comedian PJ Gallagher, appeared on US television on ‘The Steve Harvey Show’, and hosted countless talent and comedy nights in Ireland and the US. We caught up with Shane as he planned his next (lockdown-dependent) trip to the US.
Michael Fitzpatrick: Was there a moment where you decided a future in comedy was for you, or was it more of a gradual thing?
Shane Cunningham: Honestly, it’s all been one big snowball, with a series of events. What started out with winning local talent shows progressed into performing at some of the most prestigious venues throughout Ireland, the UK and more recently New York City. Initially, after performing in many pantomimes and theatrical shows I figured a career in acting was more likely to present itself. However with my ability to change characters and voices alike I soon found myself on the comedy stage performing impersonations of celebrities. After receiving positive feedback and a lot of attention online which did my confidence the world of good, I started to take it more seriously and invest some time into comedy sketches, some of which caught the attention of National radio stations such as RTE, TODAYfm and iRadio. I just kept the momentum going with every opportunity that presented itself and with a little luck on my side and the support from some great individuals, thankfully things are going well, or at least were pre-Covid!
MF: Have you always had an interest in comedy, if so, who’d have been your, heroes, as it were, of the genre?
SC: Yes, for as long as I can remember. I think being Irish it’s in our nature to have a good sense of humor. Growing up, you’d find me looking up videos of Apres Match on YouTube and copying them for days, especially around the time of the World Cup! In terms of comedians then, Brendan Grace was always on in our house. His comedy was just so clever and well scripted, so clean and inoffensive. He’d always go to the edge but never too far and for that I respected him immensely. I learned a lot from watching Brendan and adapted his style with many jokes of my own combined with other heroes such as Pat Shortt and Tommy Tiernan. Their humor is just right up my street and they would be two of very few comics that can make me laugh out loud. A very special moment in my career to date was working alongside Brendan Grace. I had the privilege of meeting him before his show in Galway once and he gave me some very valuable advice over a pre show coffee. Naked camera on RTE always caught my attention too. PJ Gallagher who played ‘Jake Stevens’, was another comic I looked up too with Jake Stevens being my first ever impersonation. I was extremely lucky to be given the opportunity to meet with PJ backstage at one of his shows early on in my career and upon talking he very kindly asked me if I would like to open the show for him. I was ecstatic , I stormed on stage as Jake Stevens and to PJ’s delight, that went down a treat. I’ll never forget seeing PJ laughing form the corner of my eye. I was so chuffed. Definitely a moment I wanted to do over again.
MF: Are you a fan of older, classic comedy, like The Marx Brothers, The Three Stooges, Laurel and Hardy, or do you prefer more modern acts?
SC: I never watched any of them. My father would be on about The Three Stooges and Laurel and Hardy. I guess since I didn’t grow up in that era I just didn’t have an interest in them, not to say they weren’t funny as I’ve heard only great things. I’d be interested in more modern comics for sure with respect to the late greats.
MF: What about comic films, what movies would be among your favorites?
SC: I’m a sucker for ‘rom-coms’, it’s kind of a guilty pleasure of mine. I love Jim Carrey movies too, as well as the more ‘visual’ style of humor from Ronan Atkinson. So ‘Mr. Bean’, ‘Dumb and Dumber’, ‘The Hangover’, as well as Robin Williams movies. I don’t have one movie that beats all. Those are just a few of my top ones that come to mind.
MF: Is there a style of humor that just doesn’t do it for you?
SC: It’s weird because as a comedian, I don’t tend to go see much comedy or listen to other comics and their styles. As someone who started their career in Ireland and grew up around that dark, Irish humor, almost insulting, I latched onto it and so when I first started doing gigs in the U.S, I was like “You guys have a very strange sense of humor”. I remember going to various comedy gigs in New York and Los Angeles and coming out saying well that was disappointing. I couldn’t understand what was so funny but it was a great learning curve for me personally and I’ve learned the hard way in terms of adapting and changing my very hard core Irish routine that really only suits Irish people. Over time I managed to hone an act appreciated by both Irish and Americans. So I guess to answer the question, American humor as a whole doesn’t really do it for me. A side note and very controversial, Lee Evans never did it for me either. A great comic respected by many but I just never took to him.
MF: Growing up, did anyone, either in your home life or in the public eye, influence you greatly in your comedy preferences?
SC: Brendan Grace was a big influence growing up, like I was saying he was always on in the background, every Christmas, same old joke but never grew old. As an impressionist however Mario Rosenstock and Oliver Callan were the two big names in Irish radio and television for character sketches. I loved the idea of a hidden camera show and pranking people so that’s were ‘Naked Camera’ had a big impact on my life. I always saw myself acting as a character in a show like that or at least always wanted too. Again though, there was no one person that greatly influenced my comedy preferences rather a number of great and creative comics.
MF: Are you a fan of sitcoms? If so, what would be five of your favorite ones?
SC: I’d have a healthy respect for them, ‘Fr. Ted’ being the number one! The humor in that show just strikes a nerve with everyone I think. Further afield ‘Brooklyn Nine Nine’ and ‘Family Guy’ are always a laugh. The obvious for a lot of people is ‘Friends’ and even though I enjoy it, it wouldn’t be my ‘go-to’. Last but not least, there’s ‘New Girl’. So all very much recent Sitcoms.
MF: Do you find a big difference between American and European humor?
SC: Without repeating myself too much, there’s a massive difference between American and European humor. Particularly in Irish and American humor. Sometimes when Americans don’t get the gag straight away I often joke “Maybe that’s why their five hours behind”. West coast even further! The difference comes in the delivery though I think, you can still tell the same jokes but you must present it differently in order for your audience to get the most out of it. I find slowing down, explaining the situation in more detail so they get a good grasp of the story, really helps with an American audience, whereas with a European crowd, they can do the maths. This isn’t a dig towards American people it’s just the way they’re used to hearing jokes, stories etc. So the delivery is key!
MF: Who’d be your favorite comedians from the US?
SC: I know he’s Canadian but Jim Carrey would be number one. He’s one man I aspire to be like. Kevin Hart just has the full package for me. Alongside Will Ferrell all geniuses in their own right.
MF: And, who’d be among your favorite comedians from the UK?
SC: In the UK it has to be Michael McIntyre. I do have great respect for the great Billy Connolly but I never watch enough of him which makes me question him. After that next in line to complete my favorite UK comedians would be Rowan Atkinson (he would be top if still doing stand up), Jimmy Carr, Peter kay and Ricky Gervais. I think in more recent years and ever since I branched out into character work and impersonations I tend to like comics that have that same talent. That’s why Jim Carrey, Will Farrell and the likes hold a place in my heart.
MF: What about Ireland, many of Ireland’s greatest comedians, such as Tommy Tiernan, Graham Norton and Dylan Moran, as well as previous generation’s stars, such as Dave Allen, had to relocate overseas to advance their careers, is that still the case?
SC: In recent years there are more opportunities in Ireland for comics to expand and enjoy national success. However, there’s a limit to how far you can go before people get bored or stale. Definitely during Tommy Tiernan, Graham Norton and Dylan Moran’s era times were difficult and I can see the necessity to travel overseas and that’s still the case if you chase the bigger picture today. In my experience, Ireland is slow to accept change, slow to encourage new talent, and national TV stations are slow to introduce fresh faces. As a result performers are moving overseas, leaving family and loved ones behind to try and make a better life for themselves and often do because of the opportunity around them. Our country has lost some immense talent over the years some of whom may never return. It’s exciting in other ways to watch Irish talent grow abroad but it’s devastating to lose such talent to a country that’s willing to give people an opportunity, a chance to prove themselves, a chance that Ireland make very difficult because of their reluctance to change.
