'Human energy' comes to St. Louis this November in the form of Michael Rapaport

The Sheldon gets a pre-Thanksgiving treat with a one night only show from the Manhattan actor, comedian, and entertainer

Being a veteran actor, comedian, performer, and all-around entertainer takes a lot of work and thick skin. Time and repetition collide with chance and opportunity. Rejection can become a symptom, and the passion required to see it through can be daunting to even think about--unless you’re Michael Rapaport.

The longtime Hollywood fixture in both film and television put the long hours in, can take a lick and dish out four in return, and has enough passion for a small office of everyday people. If you needed an example of an actor who was famous yet relatable at the same time, Rapaport would be a fine blueprint. He’s been in over 120 films and shows, according to the Internet Movie Database (I.M.D.B.), proof that directors and producers love to work with him and aren’t afraid to tell other creators about it.

The man is a machine. Just this week, he was the celebrity in the pickle costume on Fox’s Masked Singer, being presented and eliminated. He still found a way to make it funny and entertaining, a Rapaport special. He’s done that in over sixty movies--an impressive gathering of movies that includes True Romance, Higher Learning, Copland, Deep Blue Sea, and The 6th Man. But it’s television where the New Yorker has made the biggest dent.

TV bingers have caught him with Amy Schumer on Hulu’s Life & Beth, Steve Martin and company on Only Murders in the Building, and playing Jennifer Jason Leigh’s husband on Netflix’s Atypical. Boston Public and The War at Home are two of his biggest series roles. While doing all of that, he’s the host of the highly popular I Am Rapaport Stereo podcast and an award-winning documentary filmmaker.

Rapaport has a far reach, carrying over two million Instagram followers and dishing heavy and often to 688,000+ followers on the platform formerly known as Twitter, Musky’s forever-changing X.

If you have a microphone, Rapaport will come and stir some conversation up with a high dosage of humor attached. He sets his Twitter location to “where disruption breathes,” labeling himself as an actor, comedian, director, disruptor, and podcaster.

On Nov. 9 at the Sheldon, he brings all of that energy to town for four shows. Think of it as Friendsgiving, Thanksgiving, and Rapagiving, all in the span of a week.

He appeals to all parties, including the film aficionados. Who can forget one of the redeemable characters from Tony Scott’s True Romance? Rapaport’s Dick Ritchie was the west coast connective tissue that kickstarted the second half of an amazing film. Who can forget Dick complaining to Christian Slater’s Clarence about his roommate, Floyd?

“I got the letter, Floyd smoked the second page.”

The roommate was played by a *then* small-time actor named Brad Pitt. Before the Springfield native could become a star, Rapaport stole scenes from him. He did that a lot in movies, and on occasion got a part juicy enough to add a heartbreaking element to it.

In James Mangold’s Copland, he played the central character at the heart of the plot: a cop who witnessed a murder, and needs to be hidden before the corrupted find him. Rapaport ran with the role, giving it a sympathetic edge.

He’s been very vocal in his support and sympathy for victims of the war between Israel and Hamas, raging in Gaza and claiming lives by the hour. Being of Ashkenazi Jewish descent, Rapaport has a personal blood right in the conflict at hand, and he’s unafraid to voice his opinion and displeasure.

Rapaport is the exact kind of voice one needs in a bitter debate, conflict, or anything that has a heartstring attached. On stages big or small, outlets to stream or find in a theater or small VHS cassette, he knows how to tell a story with honesty and breathe life into a situation.

He’s the perfect personality to inhabit the City Foundry for a couple of nights next month, bringing his brand of human energy to the stage for an intimate evening with guests. The St. Louis stop is one of several on a comedy tour that will run through Chicago, the Jimmy Kimmel Comedy Club in Las Vegas, and Richmond, Virginia before culminating in mid-December in California.

Most, if not all, of the venues are intimate enough to turn his nonstop entertainment loose. A lot of actors come through St. Louis, promising something fun while they take a break from filming and a tortuous schedule. The good, bad, and ugly find a stage due to their name. Rapaport found his stage due to hard work, taking the reps, and adding passion to everything he does.

Circle the calendar for the third week of November. Before you take down a turkey, absorb some Rapaport energy on the stage. Get a front row seat, and maybe help unleash a patented Rapa-rant.