Welcome to Maine, Varietopia!

An old fashioned variety show barnstormed into Waldoboro April 30 when the nationally touring Varietopia with Paul F. Tompkins played to a sold out crowd of fans. 

 Tompkins, a Los Angeles-based comedian/actor/podcast superstar, clearly has a following in Maine. Ticket holders from all over the state attended the midweek show to see one of the recurring guests of “Comedy Bang! Bang!” and “Bob’s Burgers.”

 “Last night’s @varietopia show at The Waldo Theatre was worth the three-hour drive,” said Kyle Leathers, who traveled from East Millinocket. 

Keri Lupien, Waldo Theatre’s board president, greeted the audience just past 7 p.m. Hundreds of hands went up when she asked who was in the theater for the first time. 

The variety show opened with a musical number, the instrumental “Varietoverture.” Jordan Katz and the Varietopia Band featured Corbin Jones on tuba, Darla Hawn on drums, guitar by Stephen Musselman. They were led by Katz as he bounced from trumpet to banjo to electronic sound board. 

Tompkins was greeted with ardent enthusiasm when he took the stage. He jumped straight into the North Maine Woods ode “A Tombstone Every Mile,” written by Dan Fulkerson and made a top ten hit by Dick Curless in 1965. The trucker-to-trucker story warns “You have really got it made if you're haulin' goods/Anyplace on earth but those Haynesville Woods.”

 The song matched the overall tone of Tompkins’ subsequent monologue. He jokingly questioned the existence of God, reality, and the Mandela effect.

 Then it was back to music as hip-hop artist Mike Eagle performed “Microfiche.” The audience seemed unfamiliar with his track, but they bopped along gamely. 

Tompkins was clearly the audience’s raison d’être. Before the show they giddily referred to him as “PFT” and bought tour swag: T-shirts, signed posters, and cufflinks. An unusual bit of merchandise that felt totally natural for the famously dapper Tompkins. 

And it certainly felt like a group of dedicated fans who would cheer wildly while watching grainy VHS clips of a high school performance of “Mary Poppins,” which revealed Tompkins’ accent work goes back to his youth. 

Los Angeles comedian Hannah Pilkes jumped in with an energetic mid-show three act set. The variety show-within-a-variety show was the most frenetic element of the evening. 

Pilkes ran, jumped, danced, and changed costumes twice as she switched characters and re-enacted the time she took an intermediate hip-hop class. 

Tompkins returned for another solo sketch, the band performed a little more, Open Mike Eagle gave one more song. 

There was very little banter between Katz and Tompkins, who had an easy camaraderie. In a glorious emerald velour track suit, Katz seemed to relish the role of stage boss.

Varietopia with Paul F. Tompkins closed the show with the Pixies earworm “Wave of Mutilation.” The entire company joined in with the bouncy 1980s punk tune and brought the evening to a rousing finish. 

To learn more, follow Varietopia, Paul F. Tompkins, Jordan Katz, Open Mike Eagle, Hannah Pilkes, and the band members on Instagram. 

The Waldo Theatre did an excellent job hosting the show, which included multimedia elements and a sold out crowd. Volunteers checked in ticket holders, dispensed concessions, and manned the merch table. Visit thewaldotheatre.org for information about upcoming events.