Adam Cayton-Holland is an American stand-up comedian in Denver, Colorado best known for his work with Andrew Orvedahl and Ben Roy on the monthly live comedy show and web series The Grawlix and the TruTV show Those Who Can't. Cayton-Holland is also a writer and has been published in both regional and national publications in addition to headlining clubs and colleges throughout the United States as a comic.
Career
Stand-up comedy
Adam Cayton-Holland started in stand-up comedy by attending open mics at Denver dive bars in 2003. In 2006, Cayton-Holland competed against nearly 200 other aspiring comedians for Comedy Works' New Talent showcase, and won. Cayton-Holland was included in Esquires 25 Best New Stand-Up Comedians in 2012. That same year he was invited to the prestigious New Faces competition at Montreal's Just for LaughsComedy Festival, appeared on the Nerdist podcast, and had a cameo on the ABC show Happy Endings . After making his national television stand-up debut on Conan in 2013, he appeared on The Pete Holmes Show in February 2014. He quickly followed that appearance with a repeat trip to South by Southwest where he was featured on the Comedy Bang! Bang! podcast and competed on @midnight against Baron Vaughn and Rove McManus. Cayton-Holland was invited back on @midnight for the September 17, 2014 episode when he competed against Beth Stelling and Nate Bargatze, winning the competition; and returned to the show again for the April 14, 2015 episode, facing Megan Neuringer and Kurt Braunohler.
The Grawlix
In 2007, Cayton-Holland founded Wrist Deep Productions with fellow comedians Greg Baumhauer, Ben Roy, Jim Hickox, and Andrew Orvedahl. Wrist Deep developed "Los Comicos Super Hilariosos," a regular show that welcomed big-name comics like Arj Barker, Maria Bamford, Tig Notaro, and Moshe Kasher. The group eventually dissolved and reformed as The Grawlix in 2011. The Grawlix consists of Cayton-Holland, Ben Roy and Andrew Orvedahl. The troupe performs a monthly show at The Bug Theater in Denver, featuring standup sets from each of the principals, a variety of national guest comedians, and screenings of their web series videos, produced by The Nix brothers.
''Those Who Can't''
The Grawlix also teamed with The Nix Brothers to produce a pilot for Amazon in June 2012 called Those Who Can't, about three inept Denver high school teachers. While Amazon eventually passed on the pilot, TruTV paid the trio to rewrite and re-film it in December 2014. In February 2015, the network announced they were ordering 10 episodes of the series.
Writer
Before becoming a comedian, Cayton-Holland was a journalist, working at Denver's alt-weekly Westword from 2003 through 2008. Best known for his "What's So Funny?" column, while at Westword he also did regular long-form feature writing. His writing has appeared in Spin and The Onion's A.V. Club. In late 2013, Cayton-Holland had a piece called "Ghosts I've Known" published in The Atlantic. The essay addressed the painful topic of his younger sister's suicide. Reviewer Michael Wear called it a "haunting," "beautiful," and "heartfelt" "love letter." The essay eventually turned into a comic-tragic memoir titled "Tragedy + Time", published in August 2018 by Simon & Schuster. Asked to describe the book in 50 words or less, Cayton-Holland said: "If you’re expecting a guide to navigating life after grief, this isn’t it. It’s an honest look at mental illness, depression, death and the beautiful relationships between families and siblings — one that lets you know that there is no guide to grief, and that it’s still O.K. to laugh."
In 2013, Cayton-Holland partnered with Denver comedian/producer Andy Juett to launch the High Plains Comedy Festival. In its inaugural year, the Festival ran three days in venues throughout Denver, and featured both local and national talent—including headliner Reggie Watts, Matt Braunger, and Kyle Kinane. High Plains returned to Denver in 2014 with T.J. Miller, Kumail Nanjiani, and Pete Holmes headlining.
Podcast
Cayton-Holland produces a biweekly podcast called My Dining Room Table that he began in spring 2013. The central concept to the podcast is Cayton-Holland's loyalty to and love of Denver and his home, and his subsequent decision to stay in the city rather than move to LA or New York. He interviews local and national comics and musicians about a variety of topics, but often returns to the core ideas of "home" and "success" while promoting the burgeoning Denver cultural scene.
Personal life
Cayton-Holland grew up in the neighborhood of Park Hill, Denver. He attended East High School and Wesleyan University where he majored in film. His "twin obsessions" are birdwatching and the Colorado Rockies baseball team. His father has held Rockies season tickets since the team was formed. Before the start of the 2014 season, Cayton-Holland campaigned to throw out the ceremonial first pitch at a Rockies' game. He created a buzz on Twitter with the hashtag #ACHFirstPitch, and took the plea national when he talked about it on The Pete Holmes Show. On April 7, 2014, Cayton-Holland got his wish when he threw out the first pitch at a Rockies vs. White Sox game at Coors Field. Cayton-Holland is married and is living with his wife in Denver, Colorado. In September 2018, he mentioned on the podcast WTF with Marc Maron that he and his wife were expecting their first child.
