Eric D'Alessandro, the Staten Island comedian who built an audience on YouTube with sketches, impressions and comedy songs, is coming home to the St. George Theatre for two nights of stand-up on Friday, November 6, and Saturday, November 7. Both shows start at 8 p.m., with doors at 7 p.m., and tickets run from $35 to $115.

The theatre is billing the run as a return to its main stage for one of the borough's own.

From YouTube sketches to a Hulu special

D'Alessandro got his start posting videos online, and his catalog grew to include sketches, celebrity impressions, comedy songs and a cast of recurring characters, some live-action and some animated. According to the theatre's biography of him, his comedy draws on his Italian-American upbringing and on the everyday stories of New Yorkers. His video Where It Was passed 45 million views and led to roles in film and television, the theatre says.

His first stand-up special, Eric D'Alessandro: I Don't Understand, is streaming on Hulu. He also turns up regularly on podcasts, including Barstool Sports' KFC Radio, Growing Up Italian, Jeff FM and The Dr. Drew Podcast. On the road, he has headlined the Borgata in Atlantic City, the Count Basie Theatre in New Jersey, Town Hall in Manhattan and The Paramount in Huntington, according to the theatre.

A 1929 movie palace by the ferry

The shows take place at 35 Hyatt Street, steps from the Staten Island Ferry. The theatre's history page says Solomon Brill of the Isle Theatrical Company broke ground on the 2,800-seat house in August 1928 and opened it on December 4, 1929, with a plan to bring vaudeville to Staten Island for 75 cents a ticket. Architect Eugene DeRosa designed the building with help from Staten Island architect James Whitford, and the interior was the work of Nestor Castro, an art director whose firm decorated many Times Square theatres.

Inside, the theatre mixes Spanish, Renaissance and Moorish Revival styles, with stained glass chandeliers in the foyer, winding staircases up to the mezzanine and a cantilevered balcony. When it opened, it also had a Wurlitzer organ. Today the theatre runs concerts, comedy, family shows, film screenings and arts education programs for schools.

More coming up at the theatre

D'Alessandro's weekend leads into a busy stretch on Hyatt Street. The theatre's Better on the Big Screen movie series, sponsored by Williams Eye Works and Richmond University Medical Center, screens the 1995 film Godzilla vs. Destoroyah on Friday, November 13, at 7 p.m., with general admission at $20 and $15 for theatre members. On Sunday, November 22, at 5 p.m., the theatre shows National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation followed by a live conversation and audience Q&A with Chevy Chase and his wife, Jayni.

December brings the Universal Temple of the Arts Staten Island Jazz Festival 38 on Saturday, December 19, at 7 p.m., with tickets at $38.

Getting tickets and getting there

Tickets for both D'Alessandro shows are sold through the event page on the St. George Theatre's website. The box office at 35 Hyatt Street is open Tuesday through Friday from noon to 5 p.m. and on weekends only when a show is scheduled; the phone number is (718) 442-2900, and email goes to info@sgtr.org.

From Manhattan, the free Staten Island Ferry from Whitehall Terminal lands at St. George, a short walk from the theatre. On Staten Island, the Staten Island Railway's St. George station is at the same terminal. Doors open at 7 p.m. both nights; the comedy starts at 8 p.m.

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