Comedienne. Chanteuse. Feminist. Actress. Activist.
These are just a few words that come to mind when you think of Sandra Bernhard.
The legendary comedian is coming back to Pittsburgh for one night only in April for a night of sophisticated comedy and cabaret-style music.
Sandra was recently seen on Showtime in the documentary “Why We Laugh: Funny Women” an uncensored look into the lives of women in comedy, hosted by Joan Rivers. “Why We Laugh” featured interviews and live standup performances with some of the biggest names in the business including Lily Tomlin, Whoopi Goldberg, Janeane Garofalo, Kathy Griffin, Judy Tenuta and Judy Gold, to name a few. Sandra draws inspiration from Lily Tomlin as a role model and personal hero. “Lily is brilliant and has always been a classically, iconic role model. She’s like me. She’s not self-deprecating at all. She has a great sense of irony and she did it all 20 years before me.“ She continued, “we are really good friends. I love her and she is someone who is very important to me.”
I asked Sandra where her wit comes from, “I think everything I do comically, originally, is a reaction to being the only girl in my family. I have three older brothers, and having natural talent, I wanted to be a singer when I was little.” She continued, “I always had a funny sort of take on life and the world and I just expressed myself in a very outgoing, upbeat, fun way and that just developed as I grew up and I managed to make it a profession.”
Sandra is currently developing a show based on her life in LA in the 70s, “It’s a period piece. A smart comingof-age story based on my early days when I was performing at night and working as a manicurist during the day and all the insane, (wonderful) people who I met in LA during my first five or six years there. There are so many crazy, bittersweet, funny stories that sort of captures that time. It’s really exciting.”
When asked about her unique voice in the LGBT community and her responsibility as a role model Sandra added, “It’s all about women and men taking responsibility for their lives on every level and turning potentially self-destructive situations into positive situations. Most of us are head and shoulders (certainly) above so many people around the world who are struggling. It’s really our individual job and responsibility to put out a positive message of support, both within our family and within our friendships, and spin out from there and do things for the world that are positive. Chances are that if you are a member of the LGBT community, you are probably pretty smart, and you’ve probably been through more than most people emotionally. It’s a great opportunity to turn your experiences around and give back to other communities that don’t have the wherewithal that we (as gay people) do. I think it’s really important to transform our independent and individual stories into something positive.”
When asked what Pittsburgh audiences can expect from her stand-up special Sandra said,” I’m so excited to return to Pittsburgh and Andy Warhol’s hometown. I just love Pittsburgh. It’s such a hip, smart, creative, working class town. The show is very topical, it is very personal, and covers all the bases of where I’m at, where the world is at, woven with some great songs, and references to modern day musical influences. It really covers all the things that my shows are known for.” She added, “I feel that I’m a better performer than I was five years ago or ten years ago. I think you should always continue to grow and get better and better when you are “in” it and loving it. I look forward to reconnecting with some local friends and I’m super jazzed to be coming back to Pittsburgh.”
Sandra’s shows have been called a thrilling hybrid of standup comedy and rock’n roll, combined with a raucous mix of political satire, pop culture commentary and cabaret. I simply call her show a “must see!”
Catch the fiercely original Sandra Bernhard live on Saturday, April 27th at the Byham Theater. For tickets call 412-456-6666 or visit trustarts.org
