Gloria Bigelow

Gloria Bigelow is quickly becoming one of the most popular lesbian comedians up on the stage. Her performances at gay events and top New York comedy clubs combined with her hosting duties on everyone’s favorite lesbian talk show, Cherry Bomb, have made her an in-demand talent that ladies everywhere want to learn more about. To help in that effort, Cherry Grrl caught up with Bigelow to discuss her career, listen to her coming out story, and more.

Cherry Grrl (CG): So let’s just start at the beginning. When was it that you knew you wanted to be a comedian and how did you get started?
Gloria Bigelow (GB): Well, I have been doing comedy for three years now. It kind of came into my head when a friend of mine, probably like six years ago now, said that I should give it a try – and I had no idea how to start. She said, “Oh, just write three minutes. Just write your thoughts or ideas and stuff.” So I did and then I read it out loud to her and it was about 15 minutes worth of material and then I did nothing with it for about two years. And then I ran into Julie Goldman in New York and was telling her I was kind of thinking about it and was a little concerned because I didn’t know; should I go to black clubs or do I go to gay clubs… where do I get up? And she said, “You know, you really, really need to do this. It’s a good point of view, you should just give it a try.” And then a couple months after that, I got up for the first time. I just kind of lied my way into The Improv and got up. And that’s how it started
.
CG: And what was it like being up there for the first time?
GB: Well I packed the audience with my friends because, you know, that’s what you do. But I was surprised how right it felt. And then after that I didn’t know why people were laughing… Like I knew that they were with me and they were laughing, but I didn’t know why. So then after that I went and took a comedy class to figure out why what I was doing was working. But it was incredible. As soon as you get that first hearty laugh you’re like: oh, this is an addiction. Clearly.

CG: You are what some would consider a triple minority: being a gay, black, woman. Do you feel that your path in comedy and entertainment has been made more difficult because of that?
GB: I think that if it is, I don’t know it quite yet because I’ve only been in the game three years. I think it’s proved interesting when I get to the clubs because a lot of times I don’t do only gay shows, I do mainstream shows – just rooms with straight people in them. And so I find it really interesting the dynamics of the club, where it’s okay to insult folks for being black, it’s okay to call people fags, and it’s always okay to insult women and call your wife a bitch. You know what I mean? So that’s always interesting to not know which part of my identity is going to be attacked on any day I go into a club. But as far as how that plays out with me getting work, the LGBT community has been really supportive of me and the other comics have been really supportive too, so that’s how a lot of work happens – like comics passing your name along or they vouch for you. So I've been really lucky in that way.

- Cherry Girl

Gloria Bigelow

Gloria Bigelow brings the laughs on LOGO as part of Afterellen.com’s One Night Stand-Up comedy special, on SheWired.com’s Cherrybomb and on her Tuesday Blog Talk Radio show Late Nite Snacks. A versatile comedian with a background in acting, Bigelow has also appeared at the Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival, Aqua Girl, colleges and comedy clubs. Bigelow says, “When I hang out with black folk I sometimes get questions like, ‘Why do gay people think that gay rights and civil rights have anything to do with each other?’ and sometimes when I'm with gay folks, who aren't black, I hear things like, ‘Well, you would think that black people would understand!’ It would be nice to be able to open up and peel back some of the conversations in both communities so that maybe we can get to a better place of understanding, and, uh... make people laugh... cause that's important, too!” -CB - GO Magazine

The performances are witty, funny and true-to-life for these six comics, especially Gloria Bigelow, who is absolutely charming to watch. As an out African-American lesbian, her personal stories on stage of growing up in an all-Caucasian suburb are hilarious. The quality of all the comics’ material is consistently funny, and even though the backstage shots shows some pre-performance jitters, none of it shows on stage. Even though the comics have only been performing one to two years each, when they take the stage, they own the material and take control of their audience. - Edge

Traveling with Chin was Gloria Bigelow, a comedienne whose biting witticisms covered similar topics of sexuality, race and gender. In a tone ranging from fierce sarcasm to endearing directness, Bigelow sewed together pieces of her own coming-of-age story.

“I chose to be gay because my life wasn’t hard enough being black and a woman,” she said sarcastically. - Yale Daily News

Last week my funny bone and I were fortunate enough to Shoot the ‘Schmootz with comedienne and community caregiver, Gloria Bigelow. We sat down for a late night snack of humor, politics, and the occasional reminiscence of nostalgic TV. Going into the interview, I was quite familiar with Gloria’s comedic timing, but I soon discovered - Mind Schmootz

Gloria Bigelow brings the laughs on LOGO as part of Afterellen.com’s One Night Stand-Up comedy special, on SheWired.com’s Cherrybomb and on her Tuesday Blog Talk Radio show Late Nite Snacks. A versatile comedian with a background in acting, Bigelow has also appeared at the Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival, Aqua Girl, colleges and comedy clubs. Bigelow says, “When I hang out with black folk I sometimes get questions like, ‘Why do gay people think that gay rights and civil rights have anything to do with each other?’ and sometimes when I'm with gay folks, who aren't black, I hear things like, ‘Well, you would think that black people would understand!’ It would be nice to be able to open up and peel back some of the conversations in both communities so that maybe we can get to a better place of understanding, and, uh... make people laugh... cause that's important, too!” -CB - GO Magazine

If out comedian Gloria Bigelow’s demeanor reminds you of Whoopi Goldberg’s old HBO stand-up days, it’s for good reason. The current co-host of ABC’s talker The View was an early influence on Bigelow, a “celesbian” known for co-hosting popular lesbian Web talk show Cherry Bomb. Fresh off the inaugural Sweet cruise, comedian Bigelow took a break on Black Friday in Brooklyn to talk to SheWired about how lies to club promoters can pay off, why she’s obsessed with Disney’s The Princess and the Frog and her worst on-stage experience. - Gay News from Gay Agenda

Gloria Bigelow poses for the NOH8 Campaign - Cause and Effect

You may know Gloria Bigelow best as a stand-up comedian, but when she isn’t touring the country with her act, she’s working with underserved kids. In years past Bigelow’s focus has been on the arts. But this year students at EBC/East New York High School told Bigelow what they really wanted was to cheer for their school’s basketball team. “I call them my Chocolate Cheerios,” she laughs. “They make up their own cheers, costumes. They feel like a part of something.” And the schedule—she works 10 hours per week—allows time to work her comedy chops at clubs around New York and on the occasional tour. Though she says comedy is opening up to more women—and to women of color who are gay—it’s still a man’s world. “If I go [see an act] that is not a gay show, I’m going to hear things like ‘faggot.’ I’m going to hear a black joke.” Still, she says, she’s completely honest about who she is in her act. “Robert Klein gave me some advice. He said, ‘Wait until they fall in love with you, then hit them in the stomach with the gay. Once they adore you, when you say you’re gay, you’re really going to flip their world.’?” - The Advocate