My Jo Koy experience at the Florida Theatre
Published by Sareth Ney on Feb. 19, 2019 at 8:02 p.m.
Updated on Feb. 19, 2019 at 8:23 p.m.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla.  – I went to Jo Koy’s second stand-up comedy performance at the Florida Theatre, on Feb. 19. The first one was sold out and it took place on Feb. 17. I did not know he would be in the state, until I saw my friend's post about it on social media. When Koy announced there would be a second date added, I bought a ticket.

On the day of the event, I left my house after 5:30 p.m. because it said the show started at 7:30 p.m. I wanted to make sure I avoided traffic, construction and find parking. Fortunately, the first two did not occur and I found good parking. When it came to parking, I backed into my spot and took a photo of Koy’s tour bus. I went to go pay for parking but it needed my license plate information. I took a photo of it, returned to the pay station, saw someone had the same issue, they sent their friend to take care of the issue, I kindly requested to go before them and they gave me the go ahead. A homeless man was begging them for money too, while I made my way across the street to the venue.

Before I stood in line, I saw the line and made my way to the will call office. They printed out my ticket and I stood in line. I removed everything in my pockets and anything metal for the security guards. I had my ticket scanned and made my way to the merchandise table. I picked up merchandise. The usher escorted me to my seat and I was waiting for the show to start.
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As I waited for Koy’s stand-up comedy set, I followed his Instagram directions. It asked me to mention his Instagram account and use the hashtag, #breakthemoldtour. I used the Florida Theatre’s wi-fi because my cell service was weak.

Koy’s disc jockey (DJ) played past and current hip-hop songs. As the show’s time approached, he told the audience the rules:  no cellular phones, no audio recording, no video recording, no photos, no heckling and no commenting during the performances. I forgot to request a program and an usher walking by gave me one, after my request. Chase DuRousseau was the feature special guest comic and he performed, shortly after.

​A lady usher tapped me on the shoulder and we exchanged smiles, as she passed by. All throughout DuRousseau’s stand-up presentation, the person behind me kept kicking my chair and his date kept talking through it. After DuRousseau’s set, I went to the lobby and asked an usher for a different seat. I was upgraded to seat L-11. I was sat next to a Filipino family and we had the time of our lives, during Koy’s show. For the first half hour, he worked the crowd. He was supposed to perform an hour. He delivered nearly two and a half.  

Afterwards, the line I was in was escorted to meet Koy. A lady gave us a shirt and lanyard featuring Koy’s album, “Live From Seattle”. I requested a small for my stand-up comedy sidekick, Harry. I told Koy I was Asian. He thought I was Filipino. I told him I was told I was Filipino a lot. I mentioned I was Cambodian. We talked comedy and how long I had performing. I stated five years (three years consistently). I mentioned I had a festival, Sareth-Fest Music and Comedy Festival. I showed him my shirt. We took photos together, he gave me a hat, autographed everything and we shot a 13 second video together.
Jo Koy's Break The Mold Tour Dates:
Jan. 31 – The Paramount, Huntington, N.Y.
Feb. 23 – Wheeler Opera House, Aspen, Colo. (Early Show)
Feb. 23 – Wheeler Opera House, Aspen, Colo. (Late Show)
Feb. 28 – Clowes Memorial Hall, Indianapolis
March 1 – Southern Theatre, Columbus, Ohio
March 2 – Stifel Theatre, St. Louis
March 7 – Peoria Civic Center, Peoria, Ill.
March 8 – The Kentucky Center, Louisville, Ky.
March 9 – Embassy Theatre, Fort Wayne, Ind.
March 10 – DeVos Performance Hall, Grand Rapids, Mich.
March 14 -17, March 21 - 24 – Irvine Improv, Irvine, Calif. (Five Sold Out Shows, Sixth Show Added)
March 21 – 24 – The Modell Lyric, Baltimore
March 30 – Rochester Auditorium Theatre, Rochester, N.Y.
March 31 – Broome County Forum, Binghamton, N.Y.
April 6 – Orpheum Theatre, Wichita, Kan.
April 7 – Uptown Theater, Kansas City, Mo.
April 12 – Hard Rock Rocksino Northfield Park Hard Rock Live, Northfield, Ohio
April 25 – 26 – Club Regent Event Center, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada (Two Sold Out Shows, Third Show Added)
April 27 – Mystic Lake Casino Hotel, Prior Lake, Minn.
April 28 – Alerus Center, Grands Forks, N.D.
May 17 - 19, May 24 - 26 – Ontario Improv, Ontario, Calif.
May 31 - June 2 – Wynn Casino, Las Vegas
June 21 – Thunder Valley Casino Resort, Lincoln, Calif.
Aug. 9 - 11, Aug. 16 - Aug. 18 – Brea Improv, Brea, Calif.
Aug. 30 - Sept. 1 – Orlando Improv, Oxnard, Calif.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sareth Ney is the journalist for A Quarter and Dream Pictures. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mass Communications from Colorado State University-Pueblo. He is a former apprentice to master of horror, Clive Barker. He is a Wu-Tang Clan inspired superhero, Wu-Man Chu. He is an award-winning short filmmaker; his goal is to write 150 articles in select time zones, he inducts every article into his hall of fame, is a stand-up comedian, motivational speaker, philanthropist, founder and co-host of Pueblo's Independent Multimedia Podcast, is the festival director at Sareth-Fest Music and Comedy Festival and Corazon Comedy Festival. ​ ​​