Comedy Basement at humankind: Rocky Whatule and Keith Ellis Bring Live Stand-Up to Sedona

Some nights, laughter is the medicine a community needs. Comedy Basement at humankind delivered exactly that—a raucous evening of stand-up comedy hosted by the Bonners and Berets, featuring touring professionals Keith Ellis and Rocky Whatule, with proceeds supporting local flood relief efforts.

"You're all beautiful and wonderful people for choosing to share and experience joy during a time like this," Jonathan told the crowd early in the evening, setting the tone for what would become a masterclass in finding levity without losing sight of service.

Who Are the Bonners and Berets?

Becca and Jonathan—the husband-wife duo known as the Bonners and Berets—bring an unusual energy to comedy hosting. Married for two years and self-described as "still very much in the honeymoon phase," they've built their act on radical authenticity and matching outfits. "When you're matching, you don't get lost," Becca explained. "People know you come in a pair."

Their origin stories reveal the making of their comedic sensibilities. Becca got her start at age four when her Pop-Pop, a used car salesman, trained her to say Forrest Gump's signature line to customers—a joke she didn't understand until she was twelve. Jonathan's path was even more unconventional: as a child preacher in the "convalescent ministry," he'd preach to homeless people in the park while church leaders hid the chicken until after his sermon. "When you're homeless and you're hungry, you don't want to listen to a child tell you about your sins," he recalled with perfect comic timing.

The couple has developed their own brand of absurdist humor, including "celebration songs" for every holiday set to the tune of "Happy Birthday." They demonstrated their Thanksgiving version—"Happy Thanksgiving to you"—and even created one for confessing you've rear-ended someone's car. "That's for you guys, okay? Ours to yours," Jonathan said.

What Happened When the Pros Took the Stage?

Keith Ellis, who traveled from Phoenix, brought decades of touring experience to the room—from cruise ships to military bases in Poland, Kuwait, and Germany. His comedy mines the particulars of Black American life while finding universal human absurdity. He opened with a joke about doing shows in South Carolina: "You crack a joke in the South, you don't get teeth, you just get gums."

Ellis's material ranged from his mother's folk remedy of rubbing heated kerosene on him and his brother ("Sometimes my dad would walk in the room smoking. We're like, 'What the hell is he doing here? Does he not know we flammable right now?'") to the indignities of aging past 55. His bit about falling in slow motion landed perfectly: "When you're 55 and you fall, you call people. 'Hey, how you doing?' 'I'm good. How you doing?' 'Just want to give you a call. I fell today.'"

One of his sharpest observations came from his month-long residency in Germany, where his translator asked upon seeing another Black person: "Keith, look. Do you know him?" Ellis described the silent communication that followed: "We have eye-to-eye contact. We actually had a conversation with eyes. Click, click. You're not a hostage, right? Me either."

Rocky Whatule, arriving from Pennsylvania by way of Los Angeles, brought a different energy—part martial artist (he's a three-time world champion), part tech-savvy dad navigating modern absurdity. His opening bit about getting ticketed for pumping his own gas in Oregon in 2002 set the stage for his observational style: "I don't see the cop on the other side of the 76 station. This cop dropped his donut and peed himself. He was so excited."

But Whatule's standout material centered on his family's discovery of asking Alexa to make fart noises. What began as simple amusement evolved into his son setting a "fart alarm" on his ex-wife's Echo Dot while she was home alone. "She's working on her laundry in her room. And at 10:30 in the morning, from the kitchen, she hears PRRRRRT." The image of her grabbing a stick to confront an "intruder with irritable bowel syndrome" before realizing it was the Alexa had the room howling.

Why Does Comedy Basement Matter Right Now?

The event carried deeper purpose than pure entertainment. As Becca announced early on, "A portion of your ticket proceeds tonight are going to the relief fund for the flood victims," acknowledging recent local devastation while refusing to let tragedy define the evening.

This balance—honoring difficulty while choosing joy—threaded through the entire night. Jonathan's reflection on watching "Remember the Titans" with his wife the night before crystallized it: "Growing up is realizing that the internet exists, and the internet people are going to do a whole bunch of research, and they going to come out and be like, 'Hey, well, did you know, not a lot of that stuff even really happened that way?' And it affected me at first... And then I was like, 'No, I appreciate you telling me that because I needed to hear that when I was a child.'"

He continued: "It's the stories that you're told, and you hold onto the idea of it, and it makes you a better person. I don't know why left side is the strong side, but I do know that I'm on the strong side all the time right here with you all. Every time you choose joy, you're really stepping out onto the strong side of things."

Ellis echoed this philosophy in his closer: "You got to have fun in life. You got to laugh. You got to just do crazy things." And Whatule emphasized embracing rather than fearing technology and change: "Embrace the AI. Have fun with the AI... farts are funny. And I don't care who you are, at what age, farts are still funny."

The full Comedy Basement replay captures not just the jokes but the atmosphere—a Sedona community gathering to practice what the Bonners and Berets preach: that matching with your people, sharing stories both true and embellished, and choosing laughter even when things are hard is how we stay on the strong side together.

As Becca put it in her introduction of Whatule: "He has traveled by aerodynamics and then by a powered mechanical horse to be here tonight." Sometimes the journey to joy requires creativity, persistence, and a willingness to look slightly ridiculous. Watch the full show to see exactly how it's done.

▶ Watch the replay on humankind →