The Capitol Steps to Bring Political Satire to Playhouse Square

Those equal opportunity offenders who put the "mock" in democracy are back with a new show guaranteed to deliver pre-election laughs! The Capitol Steps...who claim to be "the only group in America funnier than Congress"...have put audiences on notice: Come to Playhouse Square's Connor Palace Theatre ready for bi-partisan belly laughs, guffaws and snickers, SATURDAY, OCT. 29th at 7:30 pm.

Thank to our politicians, there's never a shortage of material for the Steps, who explain, "Typically the Republicans goof up and the Democrats party, or the Democrats goof up and the Republicans party. That's what we call the two party system." It's all fodder for their performances which (for those who've never been entertained by the Steps) is a cross between "Saturday Night Live" and Second City's topical humor. In addition to U.S. politicians, everyone is fair game for their musical satire, whether it's O.J. Simpson, Osama Bin Laden, Paris Hilton or Russia's Vladimir Putin. And, of course, there have never been two such presidential candidates as this year for material to feed The Steps comedic satire!

This never-ending wealth of humor has enabled the Steps to churn out yearly topical comedy albums, with titles like When Bush Comes to Shove; Between Iraq and a Hard Place and One Bush, Two Bush, Old Bush, New Bush. Their current album is Campaign and Suffering. On their website at www.capsteps.com, fans can download a new satirical song each week such as "Sound of Moose-Sick" (sung to "The Sound of Music") or "Obama Mia!" (sung to "Mama Mia!").

Composed of current and former Congressional staffers, The Capitol Steps began in 1981 at the office Christmas party of former Senator Charles Percy. And...like most things in Congress...they never knew when to stop. (The group notes that most of the members of Congress for whom the Capitol Steps have worked have either been defeated or placed under investigation!)

The Steps' bi-partisan satire soon spilled over to: live performances, their own specials for Public Television, as well as appearances on all three networks, regular exposure on National Public Radio and an on-going weekend gig as resident comedy artists at Chelsea's in Washington, DC's Georgetown district.

The view from the Capitol Steps pokes fun at issues and public figures, with past administration jibes including a skit about a certain President who "played the saxophone without inhaling;" a Steps' cum Mrs. Dan Quayle singing "I Want A Man With A Slow Mind" and other song parodies like "We Arm The World" (to "We Are The World"),"Heard It On The Nightline," "Hang Down Your Head, Tom Daschle," "You Can't Fly With Giant Thighs," "Pirates of Ted's Pants"...you get the picture.

Many celebs and politicians (some of whom have been targets themselves) have performed with the Steps, such as Sam Donaldson, Vice President Gore, Pat Robertson and former President Bush. In fact, his experiences with the troupe prompted this comment from the senior Bush: "The Capitol Steps make it easier to leave office!"

(Tickets are $45, $35, $25 & $10 Smart Seats for the Capitol Steps' Sat., OCT. 29th 7:30 pm show at Playhouse Square's Connor Palace Theatre. Available online at playhousesquare.org; at the ticket office; or call 216-241-6000.)

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