This month’s Local Grins boasts an interview with acclaimed touring comedian Jackie Kashian ahead of her GR shows, plus a round-up of upcoming specials being taped by Michigan stand-up comics and more.
Playing Dr. Grins in Grand Rapids Dec. 19-21: Jackie Kashian (Courtesy Photo)
Jackie Kashian loves to joke about things she likes.
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A professional stand-up comedian who’s been touring the country since the 1980s, Kashian’s acting credits include “Murphy Brown,” “Maron,” “Lady Dynamite” and “Bob’s Burgers.” She’s released six comedy albums, including the most recent “Stay-Kashian” (2021), and hosts two podcasts, “The Dork Forest” and “The Jackie and Laurie Show” with comedian Laurie Kilmartin.
In 2023, she released ‘Looking Back,” a self-described “tiny comedy special”
recorded almost entirely through the lens of her car’s back-up camera.
She also tours extensively with comedian and friend Maria Bamford, has released a half-hour special on Comedy Central, and on Dec. 19, she comes to West Michigan to kick off a weekend of headlining shows at Dr. Grin’s Comedy Club, located in the B.O.B. in downtown Grand Rapids. Audiences will have multiple chances to catch her, with Thursday, Friday and Saturday night shows. Tickets are available online at grinstix.com/events.
Described as an alternative observational comedian, Kashian began her stand-up journey while attending college in Wisconsin. She has built a career showcasing her wry point of view and adult — but not blue — approach to comedy, something she thinks all comedy has in common, whether it’s described as “clean” or not.
“I laugh at some very, very dark comedy. I watch Jeselnik. I’ll watch Laurie Kilmartin. I’ll watch Nikki Glaser and Kathleen Madigan. And I’m opening for Brian Regan, and a lot of folks like him and [Jim] Gaffigan and Tom Papa. They don’t really write jokes about bodily functions, they don’t really write jokes about sex, and they don’t really swear. And that doesn’t mean their stand-up comedy is not an adult sport. It is, by definition. … It’s never cruel. It shouldn’t be cruel. The hilarity of cruelty is genuinely a mental illness.” ”
Jackie Kashian and writer Virginia Anzengruber
She adds: “It’s interesting, the comics I want to watch right now. I genuinely feel more in touch with my emotions, which feels [like] a weird thing to say with stand-up.”
It’s clear from our conversation that Kashian leads with her emotions. During our interview, she was effusive about her relationship with her husband, her friendship with Bamford, and her love of comedy as a tool of self-expression.
Though venues were shuttered during COVID, Kashian continued expressing herself through comedy by avidly performing in virtual stand-up shows, something that she looks back on as just another “room” to “run lines in” during a time when she still felt compelled to connect with people through jokes. Kashian plans to connect with people in person across the country this month and throughout 2025.
As for what folks can expect from her shows at Dr. Grins, Kashian says she’s “working on [her] new hour. My mother-in-law lived with us for 2-1/2 years, and I am working on a new genre of stand-up comedy called ‘positive mother-in-law jokes.’ See how that hit-and-miss journey is plugging along.”
You can watch the Local Grins interview with Jackie Kashian on YouTube here.
MICHIGAN COMEDIANS ARE FEELING SPECIAL
Avid stand-up comedy fans will be thrilled to know they can experience their very own “see them before they get big” moment. Multiple comedians in the area are filming upcoming comedy specials in front of live audiences. From intimate rooms with a speakeasy feel to comedy clubs in Hamtramck, these are some amazing shows that you need to know about before they’re released on video to the public.
Joe Elder’s Chicken Champ Live Taping at SIDEBAR – On Sunday (Dec. 15), Grand Rapids-based comedian Joe Elder will ring in his 10th anniversary of performing comedy at SIDEBARGR inside Big O’s Pizza in downtown Grand Rapids. Tickets are $20 each, and folks can attend either a 7 p.m. or 9 p.m. taping of Elder’s forthcoming debut comedy special, “Chicken Champ.” This event is produced by Alastair Watt (Alacarte Entertainment), with video production by Kyle Ariss (Akuro Productions). Purchase tickets at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/stand-up-comedy-live-taping-ft-joe-elder-tickets-1081490219359?aff=oddtdtcreator.
Sam Rager is Making a Special in Hamtramck – On Jan. 25, Detroit-based comedian Sam Rager is recording her debut comedy special at The Independent Comedy Club in Hamtramck. Rager “has been sharing her disarmingly dark perspective with audiences for over a decade.” A headliner at both the inaugural Detroit Women of Comedy Festival, inaugural Stand U.P. Festival and featured in Hour Magazine, and named a rising star in Detroit’s comedy scene by 101.9 WDET, her debut album Trigger Warning can be heard on SiriusXM and all streaming platforms. Folks have two chances to attend the recording: 7 p.m. or 9 p.m. that night. Supporting Rager on the evening is a roster of favorites from all over the state, including Pat Sievert and Robert Jenkins, hosts of Lansing’s Mac’s Monday Comedy Night. Tickets will be available for purchase soon via https://www.planetant.com/events.
Brad Wenzel Tells Joke Joke Jokes – I’d be remiss not to include Michigan’s indie comedy king, Brad Wenzel, in this list of comics with specials you should know about. While it technically was released a few years ago, the fine folks at Paste Magazine declared it one of The 20 Best Comedy Specials of 2023. His dry take on one-liners is an original point of view best described (by me) as a mix of Mitch Hedberg meets Mike Birbiglia. Case and point: Wenzel’s new podcast, “Moment of Wenz,” is dedicated to the comedian’s mailing list as Wenzel “updates the state of his grassroots movement to build a following.” Headlining across the country, Wenzel has been featured on CONAN, SiriusXM, Netflix is a Joke Radio, and his debut album “Sweet Nothings” is available via Third Man Records.
MORE SHOWS YOU SHOULD KNOW
Adding on to the working, non-definitive list of area shows we debuted in the first issue of Local Grins, find out about more comedy shows happening in West Michigan and beyond. Have a show or comedy event we should know about? Email virginia.anzengruber@gmail.com.
Saturday’s Grand Rapids Comedy Jam – Ambrosia Theater will unleash the latest installment of its community-favorite monthly show, Grand Rapids Comedy Jam, on Saturday (Dec. 14), with comedians Melanie Hearn, Ricarlo Williams-Winston, Donte Lillard (Dog Comic Productions), Comedian Dave Jones and Comedian JBJ. Tickets are $25 each or 2 for $40 and can be purchased at https://www.ambrosiatheater.com/.
Slaptail Nation Presents – Slaptail Nation is an imprint from Kalamazoo-based comedian The Beaveman. Producing both live shows and a regular podcast, the Beaveman is self-described as a “sarcastic, angry, Army vet full of guarded optimism and a love of comedy. Podcaster, comedy producer, and awkward guy doing gallows humor jokes.” You can stay up to speed with all of the new podcast episodes and upcoming live shows in the area by following at https://www.instagram.com/slaptailsquad.
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT
The Comedy Project – Local Grins is proud to announce its first sponsor: The Comedy Project (TCP) in Grand Rapids. A comedy theater and moonshine bar in Grand Rapids’ vibrant Westside Business District, Joe Anderson and Kristin Kendall helm TCP and foster an incredible community of comedic performers and writers right here in West Michigan. Anderson, a veteran of improvisational theater training, created The Comedy Project’s Training Center Program, which “provides training in Improvisation, Sketch Comedy and Stand-Up Comedy.” They host private events, and their slate of weekly sketch and improv comedy shows can be found at https://thecomedyproject.com/shows/.
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