Comedian Sinbad Brings the Funk to Henderson

Veteran funnyman Sinbad brought his clean-cut brand of observational comedy to Green Valley Ranch Saturday, July 8th, part of a tour continuing through September. 



The comic and actor is best known for HBO stand-up specials Sinbad: Brain Damaged and Sinbad: Son of a Preacher Man, with starring roles in the big screen Houseguest (alongside Phil Hartman) and '90s Christmas classic Jingle All the Way (alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger). 



“You have a wireless mic? I’m gonna trip. I’m at that age,” the 60 year old comedian joked to a full ballroom, segueing into his set with cracks about his supposed over-the-hill-ness. “I’m not ashamed to talk about what I can’t do anymore,” he said, adding that he’ll “die before losing the funk.” 



The PG-rated entertainer (curses are never more severe than “hell” or “damn,” making for a clean and family-friendly act) sends up everything from the Las Vegas heat to air travel to Siri, the father of two later offering his improv musings on familial and life issues. Troublesome teen? Annoying coworker? Husband not listening to you? Sinbad is an off-the-cuff advice guru, laying truth with his trademark common sense comedy.

Sinbad’s penchant for audience interaction and friendly ribbing is a testament to his improvisational prowess — he opens the floor for audience participation, allowing the comedian on-the-spot wisecracks that somehow manage to feel refined despite being improviso. 

Often slipping into his exasperated mail courier personality from Jingle All the Way, Sinbad masterfully worked the audience of locals, taking shots at bringing babies to Vegas, Henderson’s poor signal service, and Hendo residents escaping Sin City. “We were tired of Vegas, tired of the rat race,” he joked, “so we got on the 215.”



“Vegas has an energy you don’t get anywhere else,” he said, an energy level matched by the spry comic. At 90 minutes some comedy outings can wear thin, getting long in the tooth. Not the case with Sinbad, whose improvisational material means a fresh new show each time — an impressive feat despite his early on self-depreciative one liner that he’s “lost his career.” 

As funny and sharp as ever, Sinbad ended his set with Positive Force’s “We Got the Funk” — an appropriate sendoff for a comedian who never lost the funk. 



Sinbad will next appear in Colorado, before making stops in Mississippi, North Carolina, Florida, and California.