Maria Bamford on her new special and the beauty of a daytime strip mall set
When it comes to comedy, Maria Bamford has always been one to experiment with form. Her last special, Netflix’s Old Baby, found the comic performing to a gradually growing audience—initially to herself in the mirror, then to a gathering of folks on the street, and later to a large theater. And while her newest special, Weakness Is The Brand, finds her again in front of a seated, attentive audience, Bamford explored some alternative methods of rehearsal in preparation. When we spoke with Bamford on a weekday afternoon earlier this month, she had just wrapped up a daytime comedy set at a strip mall in town—a type of venue she has found particularly conducive to testing out new material, and the ideal time of day so that she can be home in the evening for snuggles with her husband Scott and their beloved dogs. We spoke with the comic about the many perks of the midday set, how she uses Twitter to meet participants for her one-on-one rehearsal, and why she feels weird about selling merch at her shows.
Maria Bamford’s Weakness Is The Brand premieres today—January 28th—via Comedy Dynamics, and is available now on various platforms, including Comcast, Amazon Prime Video, Spectrum, Apple TV, Dish, Google Play, DirecTV, Vimeo, and YouTube.