So technically, I guess this is supposed to be my first blog post. My assignment today was to create a working list of artists I wanted to explore to answer the questions from my introductory blog (that I wrote like 5 mintues ago).
I was/am/eventually will(in the next 20 minutes) talk about people like Margaret Cho, Benny Nemer"ohmyfuckinggodawesomepleaseletsmakebabies"ofsky, Jay Brannan (maybe), Guillermo Gomez Pena, etc.
But on my last minute search for a reading list- because I originally thought I all I needed was a listing of methodology, not a reading list (#listeningfail #gobacktograde3) I discovered TIG NOTARO, a comedienne who 6 months ago, ripped out her heart about her personal tragedy and made it funny, and made it so impactful that some blogger named flamelikeme write a post as epic as this 'the way we weren't'. In this performance and subsequent blog post, Tig Notaro explains how she has breast cancer in both of her small breasts, losing her mother, catching pneumonia and how her life has taken a swan dive to shitsville... and the subsequent applause and support from her fans who laughed and cried and gave her the only thing they could- time, money, laughter, and some anonymous love.
So as I'm biting back tears in this petuli ridden café, my first artist is Tig Nataro. Read about her bio here. Born in Mississippi (because that's important to know). She resides in the west coast, working on a few shows and celebrities.
So what's her methodology? She takes life experiences and finds the potential humour in self deprecating witty comments, or highlighting the awkward moments of connection between people and in relationships, and shares them onstage where she performs as herself.
This made me think about comedy- specifically stand up comedy as performance.
So the first reading that I came up with from a very insightful google search tags: "stand up comedy autobiograpy performance" produced:
Gilbert, Joanne. "Performing Marginality: Comedy, Identity, and Cultural Critique." Text and Performance Quarterly 17 (1997): 317-330.
If you have any suggestions for books on similar stuff... lmk.
As a preemptive thank you- here is a link to Tig Notaro performing about her 'titties'.
Thanks!
Johnny.
SO if I was thinking about her methodology as an artist, I would comment on her use of dedapan voice and limited facial expression, throwaway one liners, imitative voices, repetition of phrases, long pauses and personal anecdotes. I would then find out more about her and wonder if these particular choices allow her, as a woman standup, to use personal and political material without causing audiences to be uncomfortable, and what she might be dealing with in terms of gender roles in performance etc. This I could find more about through interviews, reviews, etc.
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