Episode 058 PAIN – Patrick Holbert: “Who is doing the emotional lifting?”

The delightful charm monster, Patrick Holbert, joins us to pick away at PAIN in stand-up comedy. We talk about how pain is the source of much of stand-up, both physical and emotional, and how usually the audience needs to know that the pain is ultimately “ok” in order to laugh. We cover generational pain, the occupational hazards of talking about pain, how to refocus personal pain onto a “shared” experience rather than just making it about you, and how Patrick went about talking about his painful experiences the first time. It’s a fun talk with old friends about a major element of comedy as a whole, and stand-up in particular, which we trace through a few key bits from Patrick’s own material and a seminal late night set by Gary Gulman.