October 10, 2022
Source/Ariel Elias Comedy
New York-based comedian Ariel Elias went viral over the weekend after she chugged a beer that was thrown at her by a heckler at her stand-up show in Point Pleasant Beach on Saturday night. The Point Pleasant Police Department is investigating the incident.
New York-based comedian Ariel Elias' stand-up performance at a club in Point Pleasant Beach was interrupted Saturday night when a heckler in the crowd threw a can of beer at her after a verbal altercation.
The incident at Uncle Vinnie’s Comedy Club was caught on video by fellow comedian Gianmarco Soresi and was shared on Elias' Twitter account Sunday morning. It has since gone viral, amassing more than 4.3 million views as of Monday afternoon.
In the video, Elias is in the middle of her stand-up act when a woman in the audience asks her if she voted for Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election.
Elias opts not to directly answer the question, playing along with the joke before asking the heckler a question in return: "Why would you ask me that in here knowing I'm the only Jew in this room? Are you trying to get me killed?"
Elias goes on to say that she's a registered voter in New York, and that given New York's status as a Democratic stronghold, her vote seemingly does't matter. Another heckler responds from the audience that her vote doesn't matter in New Jersey, either. The comedian then tries to deescalate the situation, reminding the audience that they are allowed to vote for whoever they want.
"I don't care who you voted for, I'm just happy we're all here together," Elias said.
The heckler continues to comment from the audience, pressing Elias for an answer on who she voted for, saying it was easy to tell from Elias' jokes that she voted for President Joe Biden. The comedian replies that she did, questioning the heckler on why it matters.
"I can tell by the fact that you're still talking when nobody wants you to that you voted for Trump," Elias responds. "I did ask if anyone had any questions, I just didn't think it was going to be that. That's on me. That was on me for thinking I could have a human interaction with somebody."
Here's the clip pic.twitter.com/soeG3dixP4
— Ariel Elias (@Ariel_Comedy) October 9, 2022
The comedian then attempts to finish her joke and move on with her act when someone throws a can of beer onto the stage, presumably attempting to hit Elias. It hit the brick wall behind her and splattered before falling to the ground. Elias quickly picks up the beer and starts to chug, which sends the audience into applause.
The heckler and her male partner — who admitted to throwing the can — quickly left the venue after the altercation, but were identified by club owner Dino Ibelli. Ibelli told BuzzFeed News that he contacted local police on Sunday morning.
An official from the Point Pleasant Police Department told BuzzFeed that investigators arrived at the comedy club on Sunday afternoon to collect evidence, including security footage.
Elias tweeted on Sunday that the police are pursuing charges against the hecklers, and that Uncle Vinnie's Comedy Club invited her to come back to perform next April.
Though Elias admitted to feeling uneasy in the days following the incident, the video of her performance quickly garnered thousands of likes and comments in support of her creative response to the heckler – including from some celebrities in the industry.
For all y’all who want to make fun of comics for saying we didn’t sign up to be physically attacked and put on a pedestal, take a peekie poo. @Ariel_Comedy you’re a class act. https://t.co/dJSahKnJDL
— Whitney Cummings (@WhitneyCummings) October 9, 2022
Ariel wasn’t even doing political material. The drunk heckler was craving what every MAGAt craves — grievance and revenge. And they’ll alter the reality before their eyes to get it. “You SOUND like you voted for Biden.” https://t.co/rDCF9Cmoc1
— Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) October 9, 2022
Umm...SO MANY things to say about this but the big take away is that @ariel_Comedy is super funny and total class. https://t.co/twi2CBKr5K
— Jim Gaffigan (@JimGaffigan) October 9, 2022
so well handled. 🍻🙌🏼♥️
— Elijah Wood (@elijahwood) October 10, 2022
five stars for this flawless performance @Ariel_Comedy https://t.co/gPmNlmX9d5
— Jimmy Kimmel (@jimmykimmel) October 9, 2022
Judging by Elias' Twitter exchange with Jimmy Kimmel, the comedian could be making her late-night debut some day soon. Until then, Elias will perform her stand-up act at Friends and Lovers in Brooklyn, New York on Wednesday night.
