7. Kristen Schaal – Live at the Fillmore
Kristen Schaal comes at comedy more from an acting perspective than a pure stand-up comedy one. Much of her material is more performance-oriented than joke-oriented, such as her infamous “Kristen Schaal is a horse” routine with comedy partner Kurt Braunohler. In fact, that very routine is included in Live at the Fillmore, and is carried out to a new extreme thanks to the TV format.
That’s not to say that Kristen Schaal can’t write a joke. There are plenty of them in her first hour-long special, and they do not disappoint. But she is not content to play by the rules of the typical stand-up comedy special, and instead expands it into an absurdist, Kaufmanesque take on the format. Schaal spent a lot of time disavowing the special in interviews and on social media right around the time of its release. It wasn’t entirely clear at the time how much of that was genuine and how much of it was Schaal pulling one over on her audience. Watching Live at the Fillmore, it becomes considerably clearer, and the results are pretty hilarious.
Where to find it: Comedy Central Direct
Published: Apr 2, 2014 11:05 am