Short brings full repertoire to his one-man show: He doesn't expect you to reevaluate your life after the show, just have fun.

[Originally Published in the News-Sentinel May 15, 2008]

By S.T. Boyer
nsfeatures@news-sentinel.com

Martin Short is a man of many names, faces and talents. Saturday, he'll bring his full range of personae to the Embassy Theatre as part of the venue's 80th anniversary celebration.

Speaking by telephone on his way to a performance in Omaha, Neb., Short described his show as “a party with Marty.”

“An Evening With Martin Short” will be an intimate evening of music and comedy replete with Short playing some of his most memorable characters, including Ed Grimley, Franck from the “Father of the Bride” movies and Hollywood insider Jiminy Click [Glick].

“I bring two guys on stage and teach them the ‘Three Amigos' salute,” he added.

“It's like I'm coming to your house and doing 90 minutes,” Short said. “It's a one-man variety show. It's like the ‘Carol Burnett Show' without all the others.”

Short started acting in plays and musicals in the 1970s, and then worked in the Second City comedy troupe in Toronto. Like many Second City players, Short transitioned to the long-running, late-night television comedy show “Saturday Night Live,” where his frenetic energy and distinct characters made him beloved by viewers.

Short has appeared in television, movies and on stage.

“I like a variety of doing all three (movies, television and theater),” Short said. “Film has a different energy, and television is more immediate. On the stage, you only have 90 minutes to win the people over.”

Short said he gets ideas for his characters mostly from people in real life. “They're people you meet. They're not fictitious people.”

Short has honed his craft through a variety of influences including Dick Van Dyke, Stan Laurel, Harpo Marx, Jerry Lewis and Jonathan Winters. In an animated version of Short's nerdy, pointy-haired “Saturday Night Live” character Ed Grimley, Winters worked with Short as one of the show's character voices.

Short has had a variety of acting opportunities, but he likes to focus on comedy.

“When you are doing characters well, you are acting them. So it's not like you aren't using that muscle. It's a different coating on it. The most interesting comedy comes out of sincerity,” Short said.

“An Evening With Martin Short” should have something for all of Short's fans.

“I'm not trying to get people to reevaluate their lives,” Short said. “I want them to laugh and have fun.”

‘Party with Marty'

What: “An Evening with Martin Short”

When: 8 p.m. Saturday

Where: Embassy Theatre, 121 W. Jefferson Blvd.

Cost: $47, $57, and $77; VIP seating with meet-and-greet event, $202. Tickets are available at the Embassy box office by calling 426-5665 or online at www.ticketmaster.com.