Marta Match: A Throwback of the Match Game

Behind the façade of one of Pittsburgh’s best-known podcasters beats the heart of a frustrated game-show host. So to celebrate the 100^th episode of Marta on the Move, Marta Mazzoni presents Marta Match: A Throwback of The Match Game, in which the podcaster pays homage to that classic game show. “It felt like more than a game show to me. It felt like a bunch of people hanging out and having a good time,” says Mazzoni. It was back in college that she fell in love with 1970s reruns of the show, with host Gene Rayburn asking celebrity panelists like Betty White and Charles Nelson Reilly to complete coyly naughty fill-in-the-blank questions (“Johnny always puts butter on his [blank]”).

Jan. 5’s Marta Match takes place on the City Theatre main stage. Three or four audience members who’ve put their names in a hat will be picked by random drawing and try to match answers (as written on dry-erase boards) with local celebs including filmmaker Rick Sebak, actor Patrick Jordan, comic Day Bracey, rapper Kellee Maize, magician Lee Terbosic, and drag performer Seamus Ricci (as Deep Violet). Contestants vie for prizes totaling $400. Terbosic and Deep Violet will perform short sets, variety-show style. Your 21-and-over ticket includes a pre-party, with free beer samples from Helicon Brewing; a raffle; and an after-party with old-school games courtesy of Pittsburgh Retro Gaming. Proceeds benefit Big Brothers and Sisters of Pittsburgh (and making extra donations will raise your odds of getting picked as a contestant).

The event will be recorded live for playback as the podcast’s 100^th episode, on Jan. 7. Mazzoni, of course, will host. Though her podcast guests have included current Match Game host Alec Baldwin, Mazzoni doesn’t see many parallels between podcast hosts and game-show emcees. However, she is culling some Marta Match questions from Match Game classics. And interviewed last week, she said her wardrobe was set: “I’ve got my suit jacket.” - Bill O’Driscoll