4. Mike Birbiglia – My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend
There is probably no other comic out there right now who appeals to the NPR crowd as much as Mike Birbiglia. Not only has he been a repeat contributor to This American Life, but he has also found himself a niche as a stand-up comic doing the sort of long-form storytelling that has lent itself to a one-man off-Broadway show (Sleepwalk with Me) and a movie based on that show. What’s remarkable is that he has done all this without abandoning his roots as a stand-up comic. His recent My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend worked both as an off-Broadway show and as a stand-up comedy special, and now he is on a more purely stand-up oriented tour called Thank God for Jokes.
Thank God for Jokes includes some of his best work yet, including a killer bit about director David O. Russel, but My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend still offers the most compelling look at how Birbiglia is able to be a crossover success and appeal both to fans of the sort of story-based performance one would find with The Moth as well as fans of traditional stand-up. Even as he is essentially telling one long story, Birbiglia keeps the jokes coming fast enough that there is rarely a gap in the laughs.
Where to find it: Netflix
