Comic Ahmed Bharoocha walks on stage on the Lyric Hyperion in Silver Lake to a sold-out present. The viewers erupts with loud cheers as he grabs the mic and takes within the second of his first particular. As director Andrew Max Levy pops in from backstage to cease filming and hush the viewers they usually come to a sudden cease. The director and the comic embrace one another and Bharoocha thanks the viewers for popping out.
And identical to that, Spesh, a newly shaped, L.A.-based manufacturing firm and distributor of other comedy specials, wrapped the ultimate shot of its third particular of the 12 months.
“I feel we need to get it extra recurrently, like one a month could be our 2026 aim,” mentioned Sean Casey, producer of Spesh.
“Three in a 12 months appears low for what we need to do,” added Mike Bridenstine, common supervisor of the Lyric Hyperion and producer with the corporate.
Situated in Silver Lake, Spesh strives to zag whereas everyone seems to be zigging, mentioned Jake Kroeger, one of many producers behind the choice comedy troupe.
The gang reacts to Ahmed Bharoocha’s stand-up comedy efficiency.
(Karla Gachet / For The Instances)
Conversations about beginning the manufacturing firm started in 2024 and went into 2025 amongst Casey, Bridenstine and Kroeger. The three have been across the L.A. comedy scene for years and felt prefer it was time for a shake-up. They seen streaming platforms have been crammed with specials that each one seemed and felt the identical, stylistically talking, making a landfill of repetitive comedy.
By Spesh, their aim is to carry alt-comedy — humor that breaks conventional guidelines — to the mainstream. They wished to rewrite the playbook and produce that sort of comedy out of 75-seat black containers behind espresso outlets.
“For an artwork kind that’s presupposed to be breaking the foundations, there certain are a variety of guidelines,” Bridenstine mentioned. “Persons are prepared for one thing new,” he added.
The 2 specials they’ve produced have stayed true to the parameters they set for themselves. They’ve helped set up their ethos with two large swings.
The crew from Spesh hangs out with comedians Ahmed Bharoocha and Simon Gibson within the again room on the Lyric Hyperion.
(Karla Gachet / For The Instances)
Their first particular, Emily Browning’s “Non permanent, Stunning,” was launched Sept. 4. The improvised 70-minute present follows her making balloon animals whereas riffing with viewers members about romance, unhealthy roommates and a re-creation of the bag scene from “American Magnificence.”
“Teeny Tiny” by Joey Greer was launched Sept. 15. The off-the-wall particular, filmed with a grainy ‘90s filter, follows the comic enjoying with the conventions of comedy, sketches and dwell performances all through his hour.
Like these two specials, Bharoocha’s will likely be launched on YouTube.
When Spesh approaches performers, it doesn’t need to hear their dream comedy particular that Netflix hasn’t discovered. They need to hear the bizarre concepts that nobody even desires to listen to.
“Loads of occasions you see a comedy particular and also you see a comic in an absolute greatest house that they might presumably get ahold of and we all know that that’s not how all people’s residing it day-to-day,” Casey mentioned. “We wished to see specials that seemed just like the exhibits that we’d go to and we placed on, and that our associates go to.”
Their aim is to seize a second within the lives of those comedians that showcases their materials proper earlier than they launch into the mainstream.
“We actually need to, not solely spotlight comedians that we predict are particular, however we actually need to give a platform to what their voice may probably specific in probably the most great, hilarious means,” Kroeger mentioned.
They’ve examined ideas on stage that haven’t labored; generally comedians themselves have realized their act wants extra finessing.
Ahmed Bharoocha, proper, greets his spouse, Abby Londer, and youngsters, Rukaiya and Walter Bharoocha, after his efficiency on the Lyric Hyperion.
(Karla Gachet / For The Instances)
The creators of Spesh say their job is to curate a playlist of comedy specials from must-see comedians to uplift their careers — to present them house to comfortably be themselves in entrance of an viewers and a few cameras. “Selfishly, I might adore it if higher comedy acquired into individuals, and for these comics, I feel they want to be seen by an viewers who likes comedy,” Bridenstine mentioned.
When Casey requested Bharoocha, a 41-year-old comedian from Santa Barbara, if he wished to movie a particular, he didn’t have an hour able to be filmed.
“Really, once I mentioned sure to the particular, I didn’t notice it was a full hour,” Bharoocha mentioned. “Once I lastly realized that, it simply made me hit the mics, hit the exhibits and simply begin sharpening up and getting it prepared for the particular.”
Initially, Spesh wished to provide a comedy particular crammed along with his animal jokes. As conversations went on, Bharoocha and firm moved on from the concept and his hour become jokes about secret handshakes and his culturally numerous upbringing — however nonetheless with a superb quantity of jokes concerning the animal kingdom.
Bharoocha is worked up to indicate the web his model of comedy, however mentioned there’s no added stress — he simply had enjoyable with it.
“I’ve been doing stand-up for 21 years now, and my tackle specials has developed,” Bharoocha mentioned. “I don’t essentially have any sure expectations for it. It was extra like, I wished to seize an hour that I used to be actually happy with.”
