Group climbs Capitol steps with song and humor

This past week the presidential election invaded Wednesday night prime-time television. Barack… This past week the presidential election invaded Wednesday night prime-time television. Barack Obama put out a 30-minute advertisement, pushing back Fox’s ‘Bones,’ NBC’s ‘Knight Rider’ and Univision’s ‘Cuidado con el Angel.’ Already the election has been stalling for 20 months. Now it barges into my living room unannounced. That’s it, it’s official: This election sucks. ‘ Sound familiar? Enter Capitol Steps, the answer to your election woes. This singing political comedy troop is coming to Pittsburgh this Sunday. And with ‘public service announcements’ like this ‘mdash; ‘Have you lost your appetite for politics, not interested in big elections, do you feel ambivalent every four years … you might be suffering from electile dysfunction … Now from the leading maker of voter enhancement drugs, Votagra … You’ll be back in the booth in no time!’ ‘mdash; Capitol Steps will help stiffen your resolve to hit the booth on Nov. 4.’ Mark Eaton, who is the producer, writer and actor for the troop, knows that the general election is insane. Eaton worked six years inside the Beltway for Jessie Helms before he realized just how ridiculous the whole process is.’ ‘There are just so many issues that will make you cry,’ said Eaton, ‘you might as well laugh.’ Capitol Steps was born during the Reagan administration during a holiday entertainment planning session for Sen. Charles Percy. The Capitol Steps blends SNL humor with Broadway’s musical talent. On tour with its 28th album, Capitol Steps continues to bring laughs to listeners. In its newest offering, Campaign and Suffering, we are confronted by ‘terror lovin’ terrorists’ and ‘a fundamentally sound economy.” ‘ The success of Capitol Steps is clear to understand, according to Eaton. ‘People love to laugh at the powerful, and everyone has a passing interest in politics.’ In this election, ‘[politicians] are constantly giving us great material. Making fun of them is shooting fish in a barrel.’ Although the current candidates get huge laughs, Eaton is fond of the Clinton era. During the ’90s, Capitol Steps did not need to say anything explicitly sexual because all it had to do was capture Clinton’s deep, Southern voice. The crowd was laughing instantaneously. ‘Clinton’s just smarmy,’ said Eaton. Even in the most tragic times, the human response is to find something to laugh at ‘mdash; and that’s exactly why Capitol Steps is a breath of fresh air during this election cycle. It makes us laugh at ourselves. It doesn’t matter what your ideological beliefs are. The political players in Washington are hilarious for both parties.’ ‘You can tell whether you are in a so-called ‘red state’ or ‘blue state,” said Eaton, ‘but people are mostly the same. They laugh because everyone wants to tear down the rich and the powerful and put them on our level.” That’s the nature of comedy. Satire like the Capitol Steps doesn’t happen everywhere.’ ‘Imagine,’ said Mr. Eaton, ‘trying to say these sorts of things in Russia … it just wouldn’t happen. Putin wouldn’t allow it.’ That’s the power of comedy as a medium of expression. ‘Yeah, these are real issues, [and] it is a current events primer, but we’re not looking to be preachy.” Politically, the Capitol Steps is an equal opportunity offender. ‘At the end of the day,’ said Eaton, ’50 percent of the people in the room are not going to like the guy in office.” That’s the way our system works, but maybe, just maybe, we can all laugh a little together.