Comedian and vocal impressionist Melissa Villasenor, a finalist on "America's Got Talent," is performing in Eastern Iowa this week. (Melissa Villasenor photo)

By Diana Nollen/ SourceMedia Group

DUBUQUE — Sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll is not a fun comedy combination.

The three made for a nearly lethal cocktail Wednesday night (11/30/11) at the Mississippi Moon Bar in Dubuque’s Diamond Jo Casino. It’s too bad, because headliner Melissa Villasenor suffered from the pall the opening acts cast before her.

The recent “America’s Got Talent” finalist from Los Angeles really does have talent. Her celebrity vocal impressions were spot-on, from Christina Aguilera mangling the national anthem to Lady Gaga gagging on her lyrics.

Her physical gyrations added to the visual punch of her rubber face. Her Shakira shaking was especially hilarious as she illustrated why the Latina singer is not her role model for “being more Mexican.” (The fair-skinned Villasenor does a  fun sendup of growing up in L.A. not fitting the look and sound of her heritage.)

Her best impressions are Kathy Griffin and comedian Wanda Sykes, with a great running gag about Sykes being able to shout down traffic. I think she slips so easily into those voices because they all share a similar nasal quality, which also serves Villasenor well when doing Mickey Mouse. Her chameleon qualities, however, also let her slip easily into Michael Jackson, Rihanna, Owen Wilson and a throaty, bigmouth Miley Cyrus lampoon.

Where Villasenor lags, however, is in pacing. Too often it seemed like she was searching for the next thing to say or do, which made for awkward pauses. She’ll find her stride with more experience.

The opening acts were pretty dreadful. Not because they lack talent, but because they were playing to the wrong audience.

I’ve heard Cedar Rapids comedian Doug Thompson be truly funny, but it seems like all he brought back from his recent Vegas experience are sex jokes. Only one table of women giggled through his constant chatter about his anatomy. That should have been his clue to move on.

Wisconsin native Benny Quash was never, ever funny as he constantly joked about getting drunk and stoned. He was clearly out of his element with a crowd not into keggers and bongs. He was more fun talking about his Midwestern roots, so he does have potential playing somewhere other than a dorm or locker room.

Once the openers were out of the way, Villasenor was worth the price of admission. She’ll be at Penguins Comedy Club in Cedar Rapids this weekend.

FAST TAKE

What: Comedian Melissa Villasenor

When:  7:30 p.m. Friday (12/2/11) and Saturday (12/3/11)

Where: Penguins Comedy Club, 208 Second Ave. SE. Cedar Rapids

Tickets: $15, 21 and older, (319) 362-8133 or www.penguinscomedyclub.com

Information: http://www.penguinscomedyclub.com/ and http://melissavcomedy.tumblr.com/