Popular Bear Star Ben Zook Coming to SF and Beyond
Clark Kent and Superman. Peter Parker and Spiderman. Diana Prince and Wonder Woman. Ben Zook and Skyler Gentry?
Very talented and comical Ben Zook, from the “Where the Bears Are” fame, is bringing his one man show “The Dirty Show with Skyler Gentry” to SF Oasis Friday, June 17 at 7pm.
“In my show I play America’s favorite actor-singer-dancer-psychic! It’s an evening of raunchy original songs, comedy monologues and psychic readings with the audience,” he says, adding, “It’s very gay, very dirty and people laugh their asses off.”
The seemingly sweet Zook really is showing his range as he says this show is so “dirty” that he performs a whole musical number about eating ass.
“I have performed with a lot of other talented people but finally got around to doing something all by myself. It’s scary and a bit of a roller coaster, but I am loving every minute of it,” he says. “I started doing the show last Fall in an outdoor parking lot at my husband’s art studio so that it would be ‘Covid Safe.’ People loved it because we served booze and they didn’t have to wear masks and I performed next to garbage dumpsters, which gave the show a self-deprecating charm,” he says.”It was very fun and successful. So, yeah, I will probably bring back the parking lot shows in the Fall in Palm Springs. Skyler has no problem performing next to garbage,” he says.
Zook is excited about performing at SF Oasis. He’s been introduced to it a bit by Heklina, former co-owner, who he has befriended in Palm Springs, along with another Oasis regular Nancy French.
When he sent his show idea to SF Oasis, they loved it and put him immediately in the calendar.
Zook actually has a history in musical theatre, where he started as a young child and did a lot of productions throughout the years, including a stint as Peter Brady in “The Real Brady Bunch” with Jane Lynch and Andy Richter.
Most audiences know him from the successful web series “Where the Bears Are” in which he worked with his husband and a cast that have become part of his extended family.
Bears and their fans, have been asking for more content. Zook says there is a documentary in the works about the making of the show as well as a live version and, perhaps, a new season down the road.But his focus right now is this show. “We just returned from performing in Lisbon, Portugal and after San Francisco, we will be seen at Provincetown Bear Week in July, Brighton Bear Weekend, London Two Brewers, Chicago Annoyance Theatre, Kansas City, St. Louis, Nashville, Atlanta and New Orleans this summer!
