Entertainers Hit the Stage For a Night Full of Laughs

By Journalist Ms. Jones

NEWBURGH – Twenty-four-year-old Marcus Banks, who is on the Mike Epps Comedy Tour with Sommore and Gary Owens, burned up the stage with his quick-witted, improv-styled humor cracking on the office chairs and wondering if the venue was somebody’s house.

Banks playfully joked with the ladies asking some to prove they were married by calling their husbands right now. He dished out dating rules, “If he don’t propose on the fourth date, just give up. He must be Jamaican.” The crowd heartily agreed with laughter. The up and coming comedian is signed to Roc Nation.

Banks hosted Working Women’s Wednesday on July 19th at Whoo’s Sports Bar and Grill located on Route  17K in Newburgh.

“It’s an early event for people to go to before they go home after work,” said owner Jay Hamlet, who opened up the venue about three years ago after retiring from law enforcement.

Comedienne Karmen Naidoo took the stage next, joking about being from South Africa, dating, and a constant callback about a broke down “murder van” parked outside in the bushes.

Lastly, Bronx-born Kareem Green headlined the show with very physical, in-your-face-styled comedy.

“Ya’ll ain’t in prison no more, you FREE!” joked Green about Correctional Officers that appeared to not be loose enough during the show. Green has graced the Apollo stage as well as multiple TV shows, including BET’s Comic View, TV One’s Bill Bellamy’s Who’s Got Jokes, and Comedy Central’s Russell Simmons Presents the Ruckus.

DJ Ja’Will, affectionately called “DJ Laptop” by Green throughout his performance, was on the “Wheels of Steel” spinning music between sets. He’s a DJ by night and Correctional Officer by day and plays for the Brand Nubians.

The show is produced monthly by Brooklyn’s-own James Miller who is a Correctional Officer at Downstate Correctional Facility.

“It’s a celebration of all the women in the area that don’t get the focus put on them when it comes to events. It’s something classy, something more adult. Ultimately, it gives women something to do in the middle of the week so they can relax and be themselves,” said Miller.

There’s an admission fee, but it’s free for women before 7:30pm, if they bring a man. So ladies, drag a man off the street, LOL, and get your complimentary comedy groove on.

Other weekly events held at Whoo’s include: Thursday nights with DJ Flow at 6pm, Grown & Sexy Fridays with DJ Grimes or DJ Papi Blaze, and DJ Rob B on some Saturdays. Check out Whoo’s Sports Bar’s Facebook page for more information.