Speaker 2
Yeah, I think that's it. And just getting better. I mean, I think that's the thing. Do you think you get better every time? I'd like to think so. I think I get more, it's actually one of my questions for you is like, when you're handing a script to someone for feedback, what's the feedback that's helpful to you?
Speaker 1
Alexander Payne gave me great advice. He read my script and sent me a quote that I don't have memorized, but it was basically saying, you know, be more restrained in places where you're, the audience is gonna be so with you, right? You can be more restrained than you're writing, which is something I... And
Speaker 2
of course he does so well. That's why I wanted his notes. Because I think he's a master. Holdovers is a perfect example of his movie last year. It's just like so restrained.
Speaker 1
Yeah, my problem to be honest is as an audience member, I don't always want you to be restrained. I grew up on like musical theater. I saw Les Mis Robes in like the eighties. And I was like, that was like a formative piece of art for me, which is like the least restrained thing in the world. So I, opera basically. It's opera. I love that. And so I've fought in my writing, trying to be restrained. And with the help of people, people's notes, and of course a great editor, I do pull it back. But people who critique me still will say that I'm pushing it and Maudlin and my heart on my sleeve in a bad way. And I understand the criticism, but I also feel like, gosh, that's kind of who I am. Maybe I don't know how to, I need Alexander Payne to do an editorial pass of my work so he can pull it all back. But also sometimes I fight that and go, but that's not really, that's not being me. And the audience who does love what I do likes it. Yeah, absolutely. I have, when I asked for feedback, a lot of times I'm just asking where
Speaker 2
people were confused in the script or the show. Like were you ever confused at what was going on? A one-man show like yours is hard to give notes
Speaker 1
on. I think I gave you a thought. Yeah. I think you totally ignored it, but I- I ignored it, yeah. Yeah, you definitely. Yeah. It was like, I think I was like, it was actually, my note was something like, I loved this, do it more. Oh, okay. I think it was the sound effects thing. There's that moment where the bell rings. Yeah, that's right. I loved it. Oh. And you were probably, again, this is an example of restraint. This is a perfect articulation of it. I was like, that moved me, give me more. Find more little moments of that gentle sound effect. Whereas you brilliantly went the pain route and said, what if I gave it to you once? Well, that's, and
Speaker 2
that's set bearish very much being subtle and calibrating, you know, like, we tried
Speaker 1
it more, but my mistake would be like, ooh, that gave me goosebumps. Yeah. I'm gonna put it three times in the show now. That's something I battle. Yeah, I get that. I know you mean, I mean, I think we all battle it. Do you ask the audience as a whole for feedback ever? Not a thousand people, but do you? I read
Speaker 2
the laughter and if there's laughter, I feel like I'm in a good place. If there's gasps, I feel like I'm in a good place. You know, there's a line currently in the show that gets a gasp, which is I was having an argument with my dad and it was really, really tense and it was in my twenties. And at the end of it, he goes, you've really gone another way and it was hard for me. It was really, really painful and I'm driving away and it's hitting me my whole life. I sort of wanted to be my dad. And at a certain point I realized I wanted him to be me. Oh, I love that. And the audience, like when I did it the first time, I gasped. Yeah, they hold their chest. Cause there's something in it. And when I hear that, I'm like, that stays in. Because that's, to get a gasp at a comedy show, you go, okay, there's something here. And I wrote this down today, but I thought it was funny. I was walking down the street, this woman was talking to her daughter and she has her phone out and she prompts the phone to do it, play a song. She goes, spider song. And then it's like, the phone starts playing like some dance song about spiders. And then she goes, it's a bitsy spider song. And then it's not even the one. It's another bitsy bitsy spider. And then she goes, Bitsy Spider walked up the water spout, out came the rain and watched the spider out. I go, just sing the fucking song. Just sing, that's your child. That's funny. It's funny. I wrote that down today. That's funny. Itsy Bitsy Spider. I like that. And then the other one today was I was asked to do a Harris political fundraiser and I wrote back, sure. And they wrote back, we're going to do a background check to make sure you're not a foreign agent. And I wrote back, uh-oh. Which is not true. But the first part is true. The foreign agent part is true. It's
Speaker 1
funny that they're gonna do a background check to make sure... well, they're probably gonna do a lot of... They do a lot of checks on you to see if you've got any... I'm sure. Yeah. I met Obama a couple times and I think that they... they do recon on you. Yeah, no, I think so too. I had the same thing. You know, it was really funny. You can't help even if you've led a crime-free life to go, is there anything they're gonna find? Like, what are they gonna dig up on me?