Employee Of The Month To Feature Emily Mortimer, Hannibal Burress And More, Starting 3/15

SLATE Live has teamed up with Employee of the Month with Catie Lazarus to celebrate the ninth year anniversary of the talk show, which The New York Times calls as a "beloved downtown institution." On Thursday, March 15th, downtown darling Catie Lazarus will interview and honor comedian Hannibal Buress (30 Rock, Broad City), Tony Award-winning Broadway and (now film) music conductor and director Alex Lacamoire (Hamilton, Dear Evan Hansen, Incredibles II); actor Emily Mortimer (The Party, Marry Poppins, Newsroom), musical guest The Resistance Revival Chorus, fresh from The Grammy's with Kesha and the Women's March.

The debut of Employee of the Month at Gramercy Theater, which is located at 127 East 23rd Street in New York City, will include Employee of the Month houseband featuring her MC Andrew "Jelly D." Bancroft and Chris "Shockwave" Sullivan, both of Lin-Manuel Miranda'sFreestyle Love Supreme, Camille Harris and Smoota from TV on the Radio. VIP Tickets are sold out; but you can get $25 seats through LiveNation's website, Slate, or Employee of the Month Show's site, employeeofthemonthshow.com.

Over the past nine years, Catie Lazarus has interviewed and honored icons and luminaries to up and coming talent including: Greta Gerwig, Jon Hamm, Patti LuPone, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Edie Falco, Keegan-Michael Key, Zadie Smith, John Turturro, Maya Rudolph, David Cross, Rachel Maddow, Reggie Watts, Cynthia Nixon, Daveed Diggs, Gloria Steinem, and Jon Stewart which was his first interview after he announced his retirement The Daily Show. Their interview went viral, as did her interview with Jill Abramson, when she served as Editor of The New York Times and divulged her four tats. Other guests include: Broad City's Ilana Glazer & Abbi Jacobson, Michael McKean, Sarah Silverman, Reggie Watts, Tom Colicchio, Martha Plimpton, Alan Alda, Rosie Perez, Tituss Burgess, Maya Rudolph, Andrew Rannells, Alex Borstein, Wally Shawn, Laura Benanti, Danny Burstein, Rachel Dratch, Danny Strong, Laura Benanti, Josh Charles, Planned Parenthood's Cecile Richards, 538's Nate Silver, Maria Dizzia, Billy Crudup, Kerry Butler, Jason Biggs, Bobby Cannavale, Lewis Black, Phoebe Robinson, Justin Vivian Bond, Martha Wainwright, Mitski, Taylor Mac, Bridget Everett, Mo Rocca, Kathleen Hanna, Wyatt Cenac, Jodi Kantor, Aasif Mandvi, David Wain, Olympia Dukakis, Bradley Whitford, Sarah Jones, Stephen Moyer, Oscar Eustis, Suzan-Lori Parks, Isaac Mizrahi, Daryl Roth, Mike White, Sharon Jones and The Dapkings' Binky Griptite & Homer Steinweiss, Ambassador Samantha Power, Congressman Barney Frank, Nick Kristof, Lesley Stahl, The Wire's David Simon, Lee Fields, Dave Attell, Rachel Dratch, Robert Smigel and, of course, Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, Elmo and Grover (The Muppets not the former President.)

Why do stars flock to do her show? If Oprah and Stephen Colbert had a baby, it would be Catie Lazarus. Gothamist described Catie as "One of Finest Live Talk Show Hosts," as she turned interviewing into an art form. Her warmth and wit are palpable. She brings together brilliant misfits and offers the best in live performances that New York has, without ever pandering. She allows intimacy to unfold naturally, which led Lewis Black to tear up as he spoke about the impact his father's challenges at work continue to inspire him today. You get to a see a side of stars you might not see, like Bobby Cannavale, Zadie Smith, Edie Falco, Keegan-Michael Key, all chose to sing, which they don't ever do. Lazarus got Gloria Steinem to tap dance and Ambassador Samantha Power to break dance, and then 80-something years young Olympia Dukakis to fence. Oh yes, the Oscar winner was once an acclaimed fencing champion, and Lazarus built a haven for fascinating conversation and fun, where each live show is its own ride, and stars can let their hair down.

Brilliant, understated and absurdly silly, Lazarus has impeccable taste, which is why you're as likely to see Nate Silver, Zadie Smith, Brainpicking's Maria Popova, MOMA's Paola Antonelli, Wesley Morris, The Good Wife's Josh Charles, and Amazing Mrs. Maisel's Alex Borstein in the audience, as on stage.

While guests frequently comment on the depth of her research, she delivers an impromptu candor you don't see from self-serious journalists. She will ask tough questions, like with Gawker founder Nick Denton about the site's celebrity stalking. He opened up about missteps, a rarity for any CEO, and when Lazarus jokingly handed him packing tape and sharpies, as he was forced to move after declaring bankruptcy, Denton laughed. He noted the tape and sharpie would come in handy. But she also celebrated how smart Gawker could be when skewering the media glitterati. Afterwards, Denton wanted to know why she wasn't on television already, but it is clear her fan base is building as fans flock from Los Angeles, Boston, Washington, DC to this exclusive, hip talk meets variety show.

Catie Lazarus, who dropped out of her doctorate in clinical psych to write comedy, began hosting her own talk show, when she couldn't break into the then mainly boy's club of TV writing. Her first show Fresh Meat had a run at Comix and then Ars Nova, but found her groove with Employee of the Month. Since then, she is often hired to do red carpets for The Gotham Awards to Tribeca Film Festival panels and interviewing Bette Midler, Congressman Al Franken and, of course, Miss Piggy for various magazines. As a writer, Lazarus has contributed to The New York Times, Atlantic, The Daily Beast, Sundance Channel, IFC, Funny or Die, Cosmo, Marie-Claire, and Out Magazine. Lazarus still finds time to perform comedy and storytelling on The Moth, Risk, StoryCollider, and at UCB on shows like Night of Our Lives, Lasers in the Jungle, and Asscat.

Employee of the Month is the longest running talk show hosted by a female. It enjoyed a four year monthly run at Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in New York and L.A., with special shows at 92 Y and The Bell House, and a three-year residency at Joe's Pub at The Public Theater, which was Joe's Pub longest run with any one show. Slate Live partnered with Lazarus to celebrate Employee of the Month and will present these two upcoming special shows on March 15th and April 7th. given the star-studded musical genius Lacamoire and fresh from The Grammy's, The Resistance Revival Chorus Mary Poppins 2's Emily Mortimer, who had a series of hits at Sundance, like The Party, and the wry comedian Hannibal Buress, best known for Broad City, 30 Rock, and his own two comedy specials on Netflix, best to get tickets now. For NYC Podfest, Lazarus will interview and honor Masha Gessen at Abrons Arts Center. More guests to be announced closer to the date, and a special surprise. Considering Bridget Everett, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and Daveed Diggs were all on her show before becoming superstars, only to return later, you will walk away with street cred.

TICKETS for Thursday March 15th' at 8 pm Gramercy Theater. Slate presents Employee of the Month with Catie Lazarus. (Guests include Hannibal Buress, Alex Lacamoire, Emily Mortimer & Resistance Revival Chorus). ONLINE: https://tinyurl.com/yaejfflp Or via Slate slate.com or employeeofthemonthshow.comIN PERSON: Gramercy Theater, 127 East 23rd Street, NYC/ Tel: (212) 614-6932

Tickets for Saturday April 7th at 7 pm Abrons Arts Center, Playhouse Theater). Slate's Employee of The Month w/ Catie Lazarus (with Masha Gessen and more surprises)

ONLINE: www.nycpodfest.com 2018 NYC PodFests: Slate's Employee of The Month w/ Catie Lazarus.

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