THEA VIDALE Headlining at GOTHAM! October 23, 2010

THEA VIDALE Headlining at Gotham!

Thea Vidale is an American stand-up comedian and actress. She began her career doing stand-up comedy in comic clubs in Washington, D.C., New York City, and Los Angeles. As an actress, she has also numerous guest appearances on sitcoms, including Ellen, The Wayans Bros., The Drew Carey Show, and My Wife and Kids. She is best known for her portrayal of "Thea" on the short-lived sitcom Thea.

Thea Vidale made her return to television with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) in January of 2006. She appeared as the kayfabe (professional wrestling term for as part of a storyline) mother to wrestler Shelton Benjamin, who had been going through storyline difficulties in the preceding weeks. Her first appearance was on the January 2 episode of RAW, where she surprised Benjamin by showing up and yelled at him that he wasn't acting the way Benjamins act. Over the next several weeks "Momma Benjamin", as she came to be known, was involved in several backstage skits resulting in her challenging wrestlers to matches on Shelton's behalf. Unlike his streak before her arrival, however, Shelton won the majority of these matches.

On the February 6, episode of RAW Momma Benjamin attempted to interfere in Shelton's match with the Big Show, only to have the Big Show turn to her and scream in her face. After he turned back to finish the match Momma Benjamin (kayfabe) fainted to the ground prompting EMTs to rush to her side and wheel her backstage. The official WWE website later announced that she was resting at home after having suffered from a heart arrhythmia, which was caused her to pass out. Momma Benjamin returned to RAW the next week, but with an oxygen tank attached to her wheelchair that started being used as a weapon, especially on the February 20 episode when she led Shelton to the WWE Intercontinental Championship. Momma Benjamin was mentioned for the final time on WWE television on March 13, with Shelton announcing to the crowd that she was having heart surgery, and had no plans to return to WWE.

Saturday, October 23rd at 11:45pm
$25 Cover plus 2 beverage minimum per person

Call 212-367-9000 for reservations or purchase tickets online at www.gothamcomedyclub.com