Chippendales Audition
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"Chippendales Audition" is a
comedy sketch Sketch comedy comprises a series of short, amusing scenes or vignettes, called "sketches" or, "skits", commonly between one and ten minutes long, performed by a group of comic actors or comedians. While the form developed and became popular in ...
which aired on October 27, 1990, during the 16th season of ''
Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') is an American Late night television in the United States, late-night live television, live sketch comedy variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Michaels and Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC. The ...
''. It stars
Chris Farley Christopher Crosby Farley (February 15, 1964 – December 18, 1997) was an American actor and comedian. He was a member of Chicago's Second City Theatre and later a cast member of the NBC sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'' for fiv ...
and guest host
Patrick Swayze Patrick Wayne Swayze ( ; August 18, 1952 – September 14, 2009) was an American actor, singer, songwriter, and dancer. Known for his romantic, tough, and comedic roles in blockbusters and cult films, Swayze was nominated for three Golden Glob ...
as dancers auditioning for the male burlesque troupe
Chippendales Chippendales is a touring dance troupe best known for its male striptease performances and for its dancers' distinctive upper body costume of a bow tie, collar, and shirt cuffs worn on an otherwise bare torso with jeans and undergarment. Est ...
. The sketch's humor largely stems from the incongruity of the overweight Farley performing energetic and erotic dance moves, with his body, which the judges later describe as "fat and flabby", contrasting with the trim, muscular body of Swayze. Heightening the absurdity, the panel judging the men considers them to be closely matched, repeatedly emphasizing the difficulty of choosing between them. "Chippendales Audition" was well received by ''SNL''s audience and has been remembered as one of the show's most iconic sketches. Occurring on Farley's fourth episode as a cast member, the sketch was instrumental in his rise to stardom. Contemporary ''SNL'' cast and writers are sharply divided in their assessments of the sketch, with some strongly criticizing it as lazy and mean-spirited humor at the expense of Farley's weight, and others praising it as one of the funniest sketches of all time.


Summary

The sketch opens on an
establishing shot An establishing shot in filmmaking and television production sets up, or establishes, the context for a scene by showing the relationship between its important figures and objects. It is generally a long or extreme-long shot at the beginning of ...
of the exterior of a
Chippendales Chippendales is a touring dance troupe best known for its male striptease performances and for its dancers' distinctive upper body costume of a bow tie, collar, and shirt cuffs worn on an otherwise bare torso with jeans and undergarment. Est ...
nightclub, dissolving to a panel of three judges played by
Jan Hooks Janet Vivian Hooks (April 23, 1957 – October 9, 2014) was an American actress and comedian. She was best known for her tenure on the NBC sketch comedy series ''Saturday Night Live'', where she was a repertory player from 1986 to 1991. After le ...
,
Kevin Nealon Kevin Nealon (; born November 18, 1953) is an American comedian and actor. He has earned a Primetime Emmy Award nomination and two Screen Actors Guild Award nominations. He first gained widespread attention during his tenure as a cast member on ...
, and
Mike Myers Michael John Myers, (born May 25, 1963) is a Canadian actor, comedian, and filmmaker. His accolades include seven MTV Movie & TV Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. In 2002, he was awarded a star on the Hollywood W ...
. They have a discussion establishing that this is the final step of a long audition process, after which they must make the difficult decision of selecting one of two final candidates to hire as a Chippendales dancer. A young woman (
Victoria Jackson Victoria Jackson (born August 2, 1959) is an American actress and comedian. She was a cast member on the series ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1986 to 1992. Early life Jackson was born in Miami, Florida, the daughter of Marlene Esther (née Blac ...
) ushers two dancers ("Barney", played by Chris Farley, and "Adrian", played by Patrick Swayze) on stage in front of the judges. The dancers are dressed in black trousers, sleeveless tuxedo shirts, bow ties, and wrist cuffs. The song "
Working for the Weekend "Working for the Weekend" is a song by Canadian rock band Loverboy from their second studio album, '' Get Lucky'' (1981). It was written by guitarist Paul Dean, vocalist Mike Reno, and drummer Matt Frenette and produced by Bruce Fairbairn and De ...
" by
Loverboy Loverboy is a Canadian Rock music, rock band formed in Calgary, Alberta in 1979. Loverboy's hit singles, particularly "Turn Me Loose (Loverboy song), Turn Me Loose" and "Working for the Weekend", have become arena rock staples and are still hear ...
begins to play, and the two begin dancing. Early in the routine, Swayze rips off his shirt, eliciting cheers from the audience. Farley then does the same thing, revealing his large belly, to laughter. Throughout the routine, the two men perform a number of high-energy moves, including leaps, spins, and sensual hip thrusting. At one point, Farley does "the worm" from a standing jump. After the song ends, the two men exit the stage, and praise one another's performances backstage. They return to the stage, wearing robes, to receive the judges' decision. The judges state that they have chosen Adrian (Swayze). Nealon explains that, while Barney's dancing was excellent, Adrian's body is "much, much better" than Barney's, which is "fat and flabby". Adrian affirms that Barney is a more skilled and sexy dancer, and that, if the judges chose him over Barney, it could only be because Barney's body is "so bad". As the judges continue to explain their decision, the camera slowly zooms in on Swayze's face, and the audio fades out and is replaced by a voiceover, with Swayze's character seeming to reflect retrospectively on his memory of this moment, and the impact that Barney had on him.


Production

The sketch was written by ''SNL'' writer Jim Downey. Downey stated that the sketch was mostly inspired by guest host Patrick Swayze, who was known for his attractive physique and dancing skill (as demonstrated, for example, in his breakout role in the 1987 film ''
Dirty Dancing ''Dirty Dancing'' is a 1987 American romance film, romantic drama film, drama Dance in film, dance film written by Eleanor Bergstein, produced by Linda Gottlieb, and directed by Emile Ardolino. Starring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey, it tel ...
''). Downey emphasized to Farley that, for the latter half of the sketch to succeed, his character needed to be unfazed by the criticism given by Nealon's character. He remembered his advice to Farley as being:
You're not at all embarrassed here. They're telling you, "Our audience tends to prefer a more sculpted, lean physique as opposed to a fat, flabby one," but your feelings are never hurt. You're processing that like it's good information. Like you're going to learn from this and take it to your next audition.
In the 2015 documentary ''
I Am Chris Farley ''I Am Chris Farley'' is a 2015 documentary film based on the life of comedian and actor Chris Farley, co-directed by Brent Hodge of Hodgee Films and Derik Murray, who was also a producer, of Network Entertainment. The production features intervie ...
'', comedian Tom Arnold recalled that, in the days leading up to the Swayze show, Farley had confided that he had reservations about doing the sketch, fearing the embarrassment of playing "the fat guy". The version of the sketch shown in rebroadcasts is similar to the version which aired on the live broadcast, but the dancing sequence is taken from the filmed dress rehearsal.


Impact

"Chippendales Audition" was the first ''SNL'' sketch to feature Farley in a starring role, and the episode in which it aired was only Farley's fourth as a cast member. Other cast members have identified the sketch as a pivotal moment in Farley's career on ''SNL'', with its extremely positive audience reception establishing him as a standout cast member, and leading to his being frequently cast in prominent roles in future sketches that season. According to Farley's agent, Doug Robinson, a video of the Chippendales sketch was what led to him being signed by the talent agency CAA.


Criticism and analysis

''SNL'' writers and cast members have expressed sharply divided opinions about the Chippendales sketch. Critics of the sketch have taken issue with its exploitation of Farley's obesity for humor, and the effect that such jokes had on Farley's mental health. Farley often used his weight for comedic effect – for example, the ''Washington Post''s obituary for Farley noted his propensity for playing "comically sweaty, tightly wound characters who worked themselves and their girth into a frenzy". But friends and biographers have stated that, privately, Farley was insecure about his weight, and ambivalent about what he termed the "Fatty falls down" trope. Some contend that this fed into the addictions that would ultimately lead to his early death. In interviews for the 2008 Farley biography ''The Chris Farley Show'', writer
Bob Odenkirk Robert John Odenkirk (; born October 22, 1962) is an American actor, screenwriter, comedian, and producer. He started his career as a comedian and comedy writer before expanding his career by acting in dramatic works. His List of awards and no ...
and cast member
Chris Rock Christopher Julius Rock (born February 7, 1965) is an American comedian, actor, and filmmaker. He first gained prominence for his stand-up routines in the 1980s in which he tackled subjects including race relations, human sexuality, and obse ...
both stated that they "hate" the Chippendales sketch. Odenkirk described it as "fucking lame, weak bullshit", and expressed regret at it being Farley's breakout role, a view which he later reiterated in his 2022 memoir. Rock described the sketch as "mean", and complained that, after getting laughs from Farley's shirtless dancing, the sketch lacks any further "comic twist". In an interview with
Howard Stern Howard Allan Stern (born January 12, 1954) is an American broadcaster and media personality. He is best known for his radio show, ''The Howard Stern Show'', which gained popularity when it was nationally syndicated on terrestrial radio from 1 ...
, Rock suggested that an ending in which the casting director selected Farley over Swayze would have maintained the sketch's humor without hurting Farley's feelings. The author of the sketch, Jim Downey, and writers
Robert Smigel Robert Smigel (born February 7, 1960) is an American actor, comedian, writer, director, producer, and puppeteer A puppeteer is a person who manipulates an inanimate object called a puppet to create the illusion that the puppet is alive. The pup ...
and
Al Franken Alan Stuart Franken (born May 21, 1951) is an American politician, comedian, and actor who served from 2009 to 2018 as a United States senator from Minnesota. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he worked as an ...
have all defended it against such criticisms, with Smigel and Franken ranking it as one of the funniest sketches in the show's history. Downey and Smigel argue that the sketch goes beyond the mere "cheap" gag of laughing at Farley's shirtless dancing, by having all the characters consider Farley as a serious contender, with the judges earnestly taking down notes during the performance, and Nealon's judge stating multiple times how difficult it is to choose between Farley and Swayze's characters. The sketch's proponents also point to Farley's nimble, skillful dancing as an element which renders the sketch "empowering" rather than degrading. Kevin Nealon, who played a judge in the sketch, cited it as the most memorable sketch of his career, praising Farley's commitment, and noting his own difficulty in keeping a straight face.


Footnotes


References

{{Saturday Night Live Saturday Night Live sketches Saturday Night Live in the 1990s