If you need a reminder of Billy Corgan’s affinity for taking on offbeat side projects when he’s not rock-starring, Google last year’s “A Very Chicago New Year” special from NBC 5, where you’ll find a tuxedo-clad Corgan performing from his Madame ZuZu’s Emporium tea shop in Highland Park. At one point, Corgan paid tribute to Wizzo the Wizard from “Bozo’s Circus,” with an original number titled “Wizzo,” while accompanied onstage by a costumed Wizzo, portrayed by Marshall Brodien Jr., son of the original Wizzo, and it’s even more fantastically bizarre than it sounds. Taking a gummy bear and watching this would be redundant.
As you might know, the Smashing Pumpkins’ front man has also been a longtime wrestling buff, taking it to the next level when he purchased the National Wrestling Alliance in 2017 in hopes of restoring it to its regional glory days. In the fascinating and endearingly goofy eight-part reality series “Billy Corgan’s Adventures in Carnyland,” dropping Tuesday on the CW app and cwtv.com, Corgan serves as narrator and ringmaster as he juggles his life as a wrestling impresario and a globally recognized recording artist and performer who also has that aforementioned tea shop, is the father of two children and, oh yeah, is planning a wedding to his longtime partner, the entrepreneur and fashion house director Chloe Mendel.
It’s a little reminiscent of “Very Cavallari,” sans Jay Cutler’s (admittedly entertaining) smugness.
One might be tempted to wonder if there’s a little bit of the Andy Kaufman/performance artist shtick in some of Corgan’s endeavors, especially the wrestling stuff, but he seems utterly guileless and filled with genuine passion for the NWA, and he never comes across as anything but 100% sincere as he oversees every facet of the second-tier pro wrestling circuit, including the scripting of how matches and tournaments will play out.
Most of the two episodes supplied to me focus on the wrestling storyline, though we occasionally cut to interviews with Corgan’s bandmates, who at this point seem resigned to accepting Billy’s eccentric hobbies, and the preparations for the wedding, with Chloe’s father, the world-renowned French designer Gilles Mendel, crafting Chloe’s gown. (Cut to Chloe at the tea shop, introducing herself in deadpan fashion: “I’m Chloe Mendel, and I guess I’m Billy Corgan’s fiancée.”)
Corgan tells us, “In 2017 I followed my passion and bought the historic National Wrestling Alliance … My goal [is] to turn it back to the exciting, dynamic and world-class promotion I know it can be. If you think that means I’ve tapped out on my music life, you’d be wrong. I’m still releasing tons of records and touring … Have I lost my mind? I say yes, some say no.”
Wait, shouldn’t that be the other way around? Not in Billy’s world.
In the run-up to a two-day event in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, we’re introduced to the rag-tag, world-weary but spirited carnival-like traveling troupe who work for Corgan and the NWA, from the announcers who are tasked with doubling as promoters to the various organizers and assistants to the wrestlers, male and female, who literally throw themselves into the ring each night and do everything in their power to give the fans their money’s worth. How can you not love the colorful likes of tag teams such as the clown-faced Brothers of Funstruction, Ruffo and Yabo; the old-school veterans Knox & Murdoch; Blunt Force Trauma (“I’m Carnage,” “And I’m Damage”) and individual stars such the formidable Russian Natalia Markova?
As Corgan acknowledges, yes, the outcomes are predetermined, with each match scripted in a way to build up long-term interest in future events — but the blood, sweat, tears and injuries are real. These performers, many of whom have been in the game for years if not decades, are not household names raking in the big bucks and performing in front of packed arenas. They’re workaday athlete-entertainers, and one of the admirable things about the series is how it treats each of them with respect and dignity. It feels as if everyone who is along for the ride in “Billy Corgan’s Adventures in Carnyland” is willing to do whatever it takes to keep the show rolling.
