The Funniest New Happy Hour in Portland

Do What You Love is what you're doing after work.

Portland's best new comedy showcase is today, at happy hour. Now you know what you're doing after work.

I know there's been a lot of talk lately about local comics leaving town for L.A., but I think it deserves to be said that the Portland comedy scene still boasts an embarrassment of riches. Do What You Love, an early-evening event showing off five local comics each month, expertly demonstrates the talent in that scene.

Portland's only happy hour stand-up, the series premiere was packed last month on Cinco de Mayo, at the WeWork building downtown. Love fully leaned into the holiday with free nachos and margaritas. Co-creators Alex Falcone and Curtis Cook know how to win over an audience from the start.

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I took a date to the premiere show, because it seemed like a good early dating litmus test for answering big questions like, does this dude have a sense of humor? Will he laugh at something racist? (none of them said anything very racist) Will your date hate you if you're the only person in a room laughing at something kind of messed up? Maybe! Or, will you both laugh at something kind of messed up? It's a gamble for sure. Either way, the show ends around 8, meaning you've got equal latitude if you want to bail and go home alone to watch Netflix, or stick around with your date in the Pearl and maybe grab some dinner.

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Falcone bills the event as "unique voices from local comics in town," and the debut performance saw sets from Bri Pruett, Matt Monroe, Caitlin Weierhauser, and David Mascorro.

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One thing that makes Portland's comedy scene so awesome is that all its key players clearly know and enjoy being around each other. This chemistry makes them all the more fun to watch. Mascarro shared stories of growing up with his dad calling his stand-up work his "organized complaining," and Falcone told a hilarious story about finally fulfilling his dream of attempting parkour in real life. Monroe, a comic who recently moved to Portland from Denver like he's on "a weird hipster vision quest," offered advice on how to deal with friends in other states who are obsessed with asking questions about legal weed. Weierhauser managed to work in a Gilmore Girls joke, and Cook, true to his new Willamette Week column But Why Tho?, talked politics. Headliner Pruett closed to night out with a killer set about body positivity. I hate to pick favorites, but I've seen her several times and she slays, always.

Pruett and Falcone will host this week, while Curtis Cook is busy getting famous in Ohio and California. The Love lineup this month also includes Gabe Dinger, Whitney Streed (hot off hosting Bridgetown), Jason Traeger and Jacob Christopher.

At 5-10 minutes each, the show moves along quickly and makes for an ideal stop between work and dinner on a Thursday night. Check it out in between swipe sessions on Tinder.

GO: Do What You Love is at WeWork, 220 NW 8th Ave., 5:30 pm Thursday, June 16. $10 online, $15 at the door. RSVP required.

photo from WeWork Portland photo from WeWork Portland

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