Loud, exceptionally funny and outrageously animated, Communication sophomore Brendan Yukins exceeds the norms as a stand-up comedian. This talented singer and theatre major performs monthly at Exit Chicago, with skits and songs at “Vaudezilla presents BROADZILLA!,” a burlesque show. “I could perform weekly there but then I would never study at all here at school and life would suck,” Yukins says. Read on for more of Yukins’ experience with performing, burlesque and positive heckling.
Excerpts:
The Current: How did you get into stand-up comedy?
Brendan Yukins: I don’t know. I made my mom laugh, and if you can make your mom laugh, then you have this great thing called self-confidence that you bring to other people and then they laugh because it’s funny that you have it.
The Current: How did you get your job at the burlesque show?
BY: I wanted late night [performances] so I could do it and still balance my schoolwork. I wanted to get paid. I wanted something where I could do stand-up and sing and I wanted something that was gay-friendly. That was burlesque. And it’s been fun. What I’ve been doing for them is a short comic set and then a song with switched around lyrics. It’s cute, it’s dirty, it’s fun.
The Current: Are you involved in anything on campus?
BY: Basically the average thing that every other theatre major is involved in, like acting classes and doing shows and directing things. I just directed “For Colored Girls” with the African American Theatre Ensemble, so that was fun. Just a whole bucket of fun and race politics. It was great.
The Current: What do you enjoy the most about performing?
BY: I really love audience-focused things. I like hearing audience reaction and engaging them, because people have lives. They have jobs, they work every day and it’s the shits. It’s great watching people walk into your theater space or the bar at the burlesque and they have had a shit week, and then walking out so happy and [thinking] ‘Ugh! That was amazing!’ or really getting into something and being like, (sobbing) ‘That changed my life.’ I love seeing peoples’ lives made better by something that you do onstage.
The Current: How are the audience reactions?
BY: When I did stand-up, there were much more hecklers. But burlesque is an incredibly supportive crowd, because most of the people are kind of intimidated. They’re kind of like, ‘Oh my, we’re going to see some naked people! See some people with tassels!’ But they’re very supportive, very nice, very generous. It’s easy laughs. I’ve only ever encountered two hecklers in my time there and they were pretty easy. I teach Sunday school at Sheil Catholic Center, and between teaching Sunday school to sixth graders and growing up with my bitch of a sister, they got nothin’ on me! All the meanest things have been said to me! It’s kind of fun. I like it when people heckle and sometimes it’s like positive heckling.
The Current: What would you do if you don’t go into this line of business?
BY: I am of the school where, if you have a plan B, you’re going to end up doing plan B. So I don’t really have a plan B and I’m actually fine with that because first of all, it’s going to force you to make the plan A succeed, but secondly, I just wanna be happy. I think that if I’m doing odd jobs here and there, in terms of if I were to wait tables for the rest of my life but in the evenings I was in the burlesque, I would be fine with that. My mother, whatever. She already cried over the tattoo, it’s fine! She can handle anything.
Watch Brendan perform at Exit Chicago on Friday, March 30 at 10:30 p.m. or check out his performances on Vimeo under the username gingerroger.
-Alyssa Clough
