My Brother, My Brother and Me helped(?) a receptive KC audience at Uptown Theater

Photo by Zoe Strohm

Friday night My Brother, My Brother and Me kicked off the 20-Fungalore tour at Uptown Theater.

The podcast, known affectionately to insiders as MBMBAM, is hosted by brothers Justin, Travis, and Griffin McElroy. With technical help from tour manager Paul Sabourin, the show offers advice on life’s most burning questions, such as “How many times is too many times around on the Kansas City Zoo Sky Safari?” and “Is it bad to encourage my 6-year-old’s burp humor even if it’s really funny?”

In commitment to the theme of 20-Fungalore, which worships a metaphysical mushroom god who grants our heart’s deepest desires, fans came donned in mushroom print, hats, and even full costumes. At 7:15, the brothers entered the stage, Justin and Travis in mushroom print, and Griffin dressed as Toad from the Mario Bros. Universe.

In Kansas City fashion, fans began to do the Chiefs Tomahawk Chop “chant as they took their place on stage. Travis responded: “Guys, if I didn’t know what you were doing, I would think you’re booing us.”

Photo by Zoe Strohm

Act 1 consisted of the audience submitting questions that had been preselected to be answered. A dad begging for help on how to encourage his son’s humor without it going too far, a park ranger who wanted to know the best way to discourage people from “getting it on” in the forest, an apartment dweller curious about how frowned upon it would be to shave their legs on their balcony, and a Friends of the Zoo member who loves the Sky Safari and needs guidance about how many consecutive rides you can take before it gets weird.

Each of the brothers had their own games or bits between these questions. Griffin played “Minion Quotes,” where he shows Facebook memes with the accompanying cartoon character covered, his brothers having to guess who the mystery character is. If they get it right, Griffin must share the meme on his Facebook page without context. Travis played “Work of Fart: Out of ConSHREKt” where the brothers and audience had to guess the piece of media that had been warped to be unrecognizable with Shrek photoshopped in, giving hints with Shrek-based clues. Justin did a segment of his long-running “podcast within a podcast,” Munch Squad, where he talked about major fast food corporations and their history of falling incredibly flat when it comes to Pride Month advertising.

During the intermission, a compilation of clips from their weekly YouTube live show McElroy Family Clubhouse played, breaking up the waiting time and keeping crowd energy high. As they reentered the stage, Justin gave a shout-out to the staff at Science City after a visit earlier in the day, earning loud cheers back from the staff members in attendance.

For the second act, the brothers chose fans from the audience to come up and ask their questions live, giving them a chance to ask follow questions. A dog groomer asked how to get better tips for shitty dogs, A desperate fiancee needed advice how to get her partner to stop eating random food off the ground, a window washer who wants to how to befriend a peregrine falcon, and a biology teacher with a classroom pet who needs to know the best way to warn people she’s holding a snake.

My Brother, My Brother and Me is a perfect example of universal entertainment, no matter who. I brought my dad, who had never heard of the McElroy brothers. Despite his speculation beforehand, as we left Uptown Theater Friday night, he said, “That was a lot funnier than I could have imagined. I might need to listen to the podcast.”