Labia, Sarah Silverman, Phantom of the Opera and more!

What’s the universal truth about comedy?
If you can tell a joke and not offend the person it’s directed toward, then it’s funny. I was doing an uptown bid (state prison) in Massachusetts my last time in. I went up to two tables in the cafeteria. There were 33 Hispanics, so I stood there and told a Hispanic joke. There was dead silence for about 15 seconds, a very long 15 seconds, then they all cracked up laughing. I knew i had delivered it well when i didn’t get stabbed.

What other comics do you admire?
I grew up watching Jackie Gleason, and Rodney Dangerfield; they had a huge impact. Lenny Clarke, another Bostonian, was a real role model. In fact it was Lenny who convinced me to try comedy. I think Margaret Cho is a genius. The funniest guy i ever worked with is George Hamm out of portland maine.There are a ton of them — but they never did any prison time. Not yet anyway.

Felon O’Reilly performs at the Ian Harvie Show at Largo in the Little Room, 366 N. La Cienega Blvd.; Mon., Jan. 26, 9 p.m .; $10. (310) 855-0347. —L.M.

VARIETY

Let’s Get Small

826LA, the nice people who offer free writing and tutoring programs for kids, now host a monthly thingy called The Tiny Vaudeville Series. Each features a different lineup of performers of the gifted variety doing things that could be defined as humorous. For this first show, Craig Cackowski (great name) hosts cutups Dave (Gruber) Allen, The Eban Schletter Orchestra, Dave Foley, Garfunkel & Oates, James Adomian, Derek Hughes, Marc Horowitz’s live 24/7 talkshow, Jeremy Konner, Al Madrigal, and more! With musical guest Pop LeviAny act called “Garfunkel and Oaktes” can’t be bad, I say. Echoplex, underneath the Echo, 1154 Glendale Blvd., Echo Park; Mon., Jan. 26, 8:30 p.m.; $10; www.826la.org. —L.M.

TUESDAY, JANUARY 27

THEATER

Who’s Your Phantom?

Another reason we don’t need no stinkin’ Big Apple (note to any NYC editors: Yes, I am available to move East). Broadway’s longest-running show, The Phantom of the Opera, comes to town. It’s especially great news to West Coast members of PhantonOfTheOpera.com’s message board thread called “You know you’re addicted to POTO when. . . .” Some examples? “You use your pinky finger for the universal ‘quiet’ sign as Erik does.” And “You sunbathe while wearing a half-mask so you’ll have a Phantom tan line.”The Pantages Theatre, 6233 Hollywood Blvd., Hlywd.; opens Fri., Jan. 23-Feb. 21; $29.50-$85. (213) 365-3500. —L.M.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 28

FILM

Come for the Labia, Stay for the Blueberry Pie!

How do the locals react when soon-to-be transsexuals descend on their tiny Colorado town? “Bigger bone structures” is one assessment of the newcomers. This is one of the revelations of Trinidad. No, it’s not a the latest reality show (although . . .). It’s the award-winning documentary about little Trinidad, Colorado, “the sex-change capital of the world.” The film follows three transgender women who open a recovery bed-and-breakfast in Trinidad. Part of Outfest. American Cinematheque at the Egyptian Theatre, 6212 Hollywood Blvd., Hlywd.; Wed., Jan. 28, 7:30 p.m.; $10. (323) 466-FILM. —L.M.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 29

BOOKS

Hey, You, Get Off of My Image!

When your last name is “Bragman,” your best career options are professional wrestler or public relations flak. PR honcho Howard Bragman has been pimping stars and gadgets for years with respected firm Bragman Nyman Cafarelli. Now he’s written a book called Where’s My Fifteen Minutes? for the rest of us. Bragman tells us we should buy his book “because public images are no longer reserved for actors, athletes and politicians.  In the age of Google, Facebook, iPhones and YouTube we all have public images—and if we don’t define ourselves we will still be defined; and probably in a way that doesn’t make us happy.” He’ll do a little Q&A at this event, which sounds like something we’ll regret not attending. Book Soup, 8818 Sunset Blvd., W. Hlywd.; Thurs., Jan. 29, 7 p.m.; free, book is $25.95. (310) 659-3110. —L.M.