Backstage at Kansas City Thundergong! How Jason Sudeikis and buddies relax amid chaos

In his beloved “Ted Lasso” series, star Jason Sudeikis famously wears a T-shirt saying “Joe Arthur Gatestack,” a mashup of Kansas City barbecue (designed by an old Shawnee Mission West High School pal).

Like the faux logo, Sudeikis’ Thundergong! also provides a cheeky collision of what makes KC great, while helping out a longtime friend.

On Nov. 12, the raucous charity show he co-created with his old Kansas City improv buddy, Lenexa drummer Billy Brimblecom, raised $600,000 for Brimblecom’s Steps of Faith Foundation, a nonprofit that provides prosthetic care to amputees needing financial support.

“I think Thundergong! feels for Billy and I even more specifically like the Joe Arthur Gatestack of things we personally like,” Sudeikis says while chilling out backstage during rehearsal that afternoon. “It’s not only because of who Billy and I are and how we met, but our appreciation of Kansas City being another one of those things to fold into it.”

The sold-out sixth annual event at the Uptown Theater boasted a medley of famous comedians, musicians, local pride and genuine altruism. But earlier, The Star got exclusive access to the rehearsal, privy to a stellar throng of entertainers and their backstage shenanigans.

Here are some snapshots of the activity behind the scenes.

‘Saturday Night Live’ reunion

“In some ways, rehearsing today is like the storm before the calm,” Sudeikis says.

Currently, Sudeikis and his pal from “Saturday Night Live,” Will Forte, sit on a leather couch enjoying a momentary break in the Uptown green room while Brimblecom practices with the press-shy Wynonna Judd onstage.

Is there one word that defines his friendship with Brimblecom?

“I was gonna say ‘patient,’ but that’s probably more of him dealing with me,” Sudeikis says. “But what I mean by patience is the friendship doesn’t have to speed up or slow down. It’s just steady. So maybe steady is a better word. And it’s probably apropos for him being such a great drummer.”

Despite the backstage pandemonium and looming show, the comedians seem totally relaxed. Forte in particular displays none of the fidgety energy that powers so many of his weirdo onscreen characters. Instead, he passes around a phone to proudly exhibit pictures of his new baby.

“Saturday Night Live” infamously thrives on chaos. But it’s not quite the same type of chaos as putting on this show.

“It seems less stressful for sure,” Forte says. “With ‘SNL,’ the studio is not huge, but you got those cameras right in your face. So you know there are a lot of people watching. Here, you don’t worry if you make mistakes. You can even comment on mistakes. Some of the most fun parts are making the mistakes.”

“You can swear too,” Sudeikis adds. “And there’s less wig glue — residue specifically, which is nice.”

There are no wigs presently on display. But for much of the time, Forte dons an all-black ensemble, complete with a stocking camp that gives him a pointy head.

“You’re dressed like a cat burglar,” Sudeikis quips.

For Forte, one of the show’s most meaningful moments is singing the Traveling Wilburys tune “Handle With Care,” which all the “SNL” alumni in the show, including Fred Armisen, traditionally sing together.

“Doing that at the first Thundergong! was a very emotional thing. We had shared so much time together onstage at ‘SNL’ that we just take it for granted it’s gonna always be that way. So it was so fun after so long to be on a stage and just look back at these people who have meant so much to me. And now because we do it every year … I’m again taking it for granted,” Forte says, laughing.

Both comedians agree they are funnier when joking in front of their friends.

“There’s a certain joy in making the people laugh who make you laugh,” Sudeikis says. “It’s not even a competitive thing. That’s been my little secret: I’ve always had really, really funny friends, and now those funny friends happen to be the funniest people around.”

Coach Beard in the house

One of those friends happens to be Brendan Hunt.

The actor roams precariously near the lip of the stage while singing to himself … and Hula Hooping.

Best known as Coach Beard on the “Ted Lasso” series he co-created with Sudeikis, the Emmy winner practices a performance that others in the cast have promised will be a showstopper.

“We’re doing ‘Bad Romance’ by Lady Gaga because Beard sings a snippet of that in the ‘Lasso’ karaoke episode,” from season one, Hunt says. “And we also know that Beard Hula Hoops, so it just seemed germane.”

Hunt actually performed at the very first Thundergong! (pre-“Lasso”) as Elvis Prestello, an Elvis Presley impersonator who only does Elvis Costello songs.

“I figured that since I’m already seeing Jason every day, and there’s a plane going to Kansas City, I might as well get on it,” Hunt says of his return.

(His “Ted Lasso” co-star Sam Richardson, also of “Veep” fame, flew in for the event from Chicago, but his flight was delayed, so he had to rehearse later, at the last minute.)

Hunt, a Chicago native, just completed nearly a year living in London while filming the upcoming third season of the hit show, where he plays the right-hand man to Sudeikis’ title character, an American football coach recruited to manage a failing English soccer team. Although Hunt is itching to spend time back in the states, he values the U.K.

“Everyone’s witty — from any walk of life. The bus driver is witty. The bin man is witty. The maître d’ is witty,” he says.

Does that put pressure on the “Lasso” creators?

“No, it actually makes every interaction easier,” he says. “There’s this breezy quality where any conversation you enter into with anyone could immediately hairpin turn into (comedy) bits at a fairly high level. They’re just inherently witty people, and it’s been pretty great to live in that for a while.”

“Ted Lasso” has provided Hunt six Emmy nominations, including for writing and acting, and he has won two, sharing the best comedy series Emmy with Sudeikis and other producers two years in a row.

Hunt says he has yet to unpack his Emmys, which are currently in the boxes they came in because he hasn’t been home.

“I’d rather have them posed in an office or something. When I get back to L.A. and get my life straightened out, maybe I’ll find some place to put them,” he says.

On this Saturday afternoon, he’s still busy working up fresh ways to integrate “Ted Lasso” material into this year’s Thundergong!, which so far has meant signing a bunch of soccer balls that are up for bid in the charity auction.

Any plans to auction an unboxed Emmy?

“Not this year,” he says. “But now you’ve planted the seed.”

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Thundergong! had to move online for the past two years and finally returned to a live, in-person show this year.

“I love this event,” Hunt says. “Being able to rehearse in the venue this time is an extra nice touch. Plus, in this business, you don’t always get the chance to rock!”

You’ve got the music in you

Hunt is about to get a chance to rock some more, this time with the band Hembree. The KC-formed, L.A.-based indie act is set to partner with him on a cover of the 1998 single “You Get What You Give” by New Radicals.

“I love that he’s wearing a Thundergong! bucket hat,” says Isaac Flynn, songwriting frontman of Hembree.

“If you remember the New Radicals album cover, it’s (singer Gregg Alexander) in a bucket hat and a bunch of hipster ’90s clothes. Brendan’s fully embracing this character. It’s fun that we just met him yesterday, and it sort of feels like he’s in the band.”

Hembree’s music can be heard in Apple commercials and on the soundtracks of “13 Reasons Why” and “Outer Banks.” The quintet is touring on a new album called “It’s a Dream!,” released on the band’s own label, Oread Records (an homage to Flynn’s hometown of Lawrence). And, like Thundergong!, the record flaunts a dubious exclamation point.

Flynn exclaims his own excitement at the Hunt collaboration, but he’s equally proud of the fact that his father, John Flynn, is handling lead guitar duties in Summer Breeze, Brimblecom’s live band that backs the show’s entertainment heavyweights.

“I used to play with my dad every week,” he says. “But this is definitely very special. He’s still my favorite musician on Earth, and now he’s on a first-name basis with all these incredible actors.”

Noting he’s also known Brimblecom for most of his life, the Hembree singer says Thundergong! is like some “hybrid of a dream and a celebration.”

“Only Billy Brimblecom could bring all these people together,” Flynn says.

‘It’s just lovely to be here’

Midway through the afternoon, brothers Justin and Dan Hawkins of The Darkness sprint in. They are tall and lanky, with the unmistakable swagger of rock royalty.

“Morning,” Justin says, perhaps ironically.

Flamboyant English guitar gods have indeed entered the building.

“Those two guys certainly do not look like a podiatrist and a dentist,” Sudeikis notes. “But even if they were, they’d probably play music on the side.”

Sudeikis and Brimblecom had watched the Hawkins brothers perform at the tribute concert for the late Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins (no relation) at London’s Wembley Stadium in September. They considered the act a highlight of a star-studded evening.

A mere four days prior to Thundergong!, Sudeikis texted Justin about possibly being a late addition to the bill.

“I love how last-minute this is,” Justin replied.

The Darkness duo promptly agreed and spent the next few days navigating an increasingly complicated series of airport and airline hassles to travel from Europe to KC.

At rehearsal, the brothers are still figuring out the logistics of their set, which includes Justin’s earnest duet with Sudeikis on a cover of Queen and David Bowie’s “Under Pressure,” and a barn-burning version of the memorable Darkness single “I Believe in a Thing Called Love.” Despite their rush and inevitable jet lag, the pair are both stunningly polite.

“Honestly, it’s just lovely to be here,” Justin declares en route to the dressing room, where he will eventually don a shimmery silver jumpsuit that’s open all the way down to his navel.

Drummer extraordinaire

Speaking of moving quickly … meet Jason Barnes.

Nicknamed “the Bionic Drummer,” Barnes holds the Guinness World Record for Most Beats Per Minute Using a Drumstick Prosthetic.

“I’ve done a lot of work with Georgia Tech trying to develop various prosthetics, and one of them helped break a record. I obviously didn’t think it was fair to be considered the ‘fastest drummer’ because it was helped with robotics,” Barnes explains prior to his sound check.

Barnes wore an electromyographic band that senses muscle activity from his forearm.

His winning total: a staggering 2,400 beats per minute, or 40 per second.

“Yeah, it’s incredibly fast,” he deadpans.

Based in Atlanta, Barnes got electrocuted at work a decade ago, and doctors amputated his hand. Before that, he’d been playing drums for seven years.

“Basically, my main form of therapy in rehab was getting back on a kit. My focus was trying to develop some sort of device that would allow me to play drums again,” he says.

He first met Brimblecom, executive director of Steps of Faith, at a conference sponsored by Hanger, a leading provider of orthotics and prosthetics. Barnes accepted a casual offer to appear at the first Thundergong!, and he’s been an onstage mainstay at every event since.

“Any way I can help raise money for amputees who can’t afford things — I was once in that situation myself. So this feels good for me to give back like that,” he says.

Is there anything else Barnes does better than before on drums with a prosthetic arm?

“Well, I don’t break as many sticks,” he says.

Fred Armisen at the mic

Barnes climbs up on the kit to rehearse a version of Billy Idol’s “Dancing With Myself.” At the mic is Armisen, the drummer-turned-humorist who actually wields a guitar on this tune.

“When there’s nothing to lose and there’s nothing to prove / Well, I’m dancing with myself,” he sings.

Armisen certainly has little left to prove in the music or comedy world. The “SNL” veteran holds the record for having appeared in the second-most sketches (856) of any cast member. Elsewhere, he can be seen as bandleader for NBC’s “Late Night With Seth Meyers.” Factoring in his oddball series “Portlandia,” he’s earned 14 Emmy nominations and even a Peabody Award.

“I come back to Thundergong! because — well, obviously for the cause — and it’s also because I love this city,” Armisen says.

“But I’ve always had the best time just being with my friends, and that includes Billy and people I’ve met since I’ve been coming here. It’s really one of the greatest feelings in life to see Jason and Will. I spent so much time with them. During the soundcheck, all these memories came rushing back. I could feel my whole body just relaxing because I’m as comfortable as I can be with these guys.”

As an “SNL” veteran, Armisen admits he relishes the chaos.

“I can see it in other people who’ve been on ‘SNL,’ and I see them in situations where I can tell everyone around them is stressed. ‘We don’t have our show yet. We didn’t put this together yet.’ And then when I see ‘SNL’ people, they’re always like, ‘Oh, just leave it as is. It’s going to work out,’” he says.

“And it always works out.”

Armisen notes that this year’s show leans more toward music than comedy – probably around a 70/30 split. But the central mission remains the same.

“The idea of prosthetic limbs for musicians is something I thought about even before I ever got involved with this,” he says. “There should be no barriers between someone making music. It’s such a good fight. It’s not even a fight against somebody; it’s a fight against things that happened to somebody.”

‘It just feels really good’

The Thundergong! organizers also had to fight to keep the show alive during the pandemic. For the online only events the past two years, the celebrity-factor was high, but the vibe was simply not the same.

“Switching to online provided lots of unknowns, especially in 2020 because we weren’t exactly good at doing those things,” says Allison Brimblecom, wife of Billy and a singer in Summer Breeze who supplies many of the sweet harmonies during the show.

“It just feels really good to be back in person again. That’s where the magic is, and just being in this room, this venue, you can’t really re-create that,” she says.

Back in the green room, Billy props his left leg up on a chair, adjusting his pant leg that reveals the prosthetic on his “high-hat foot.” He lost the leg to cancer.

“Some things get easier every year just because, you know, it’s like muscle memory,” he says. “But there are so many moving pieces. Like I know how to put on a concert; this is so much more than that. At one point I was onstage drumming and all I could think about was, ‘Did I get this person on the guestlist?’”

As for Billy’s one word to describe his friendship with Jason?

He says, “Unconditional.”

Or better yet … Unconditional!

How to donate

Thundergong! 2022 raised over $600,000, and donations are still welcome for the Steps of Faith Foundation.

▪ Online at stepsoffaithfoundation.org

▪ Or text the word STEPS to 44321

Jon Niccum is a filmmaker, freelance writer and author of “The Worst Gig: From Psycho Fans to Stage Riots, Famous Musicians Tell All.” His new book, “With Great Power: Leadership, Character and Conflict Beyond the Superhero Multiverse,” comes out in 2023.