Oftentimes, Bruce McCulloch finds himself, or rather places himself in weird situations without really knowing what he’s doing. But somewhere between the admitted bravery and stupidity of such adventures, the Canadian comedy legend is both scared and excited to be making his way to Boston on the solo tip.
Bringing his Bravery and Stupidity Tour to The Wilbur tonight (March 16), McCulloch is looking forward to further showcasing the roots of his jam-packed comedy résumé, as his stand-up days started even before he ever took the stage as part of the legendary comedy troupe, The Kids In The Hall. With a fresh slate of jokes, songs, and stories, the Edmonton native is looking forward to taking center stage in the spotlight, and connecting with his audience in only a way that stand-up comedy can provide.
“After doing this show off Broadway a few times, I’ve really settled into what the fun of it is and whatever challenges there are, and it’s just different. Of course, it’s fun to work with Kids In The Hall, but it’s just so much fun to get up on stage and connect with an audience like this by telling stories, playing music and telling jokes,” McCulloch tells Vanyaland. “It’s like figuring out which child I love more. Is it Roscoe or Heidi? I’ll get drunk, then I’ll tell you which one. But it’s just so different, and it’s great to connect with an audience like this at this time in the world, and at this stage in my life.”
While the show obviously is filled with McCulloch’s brand of comedy, he reflects on a compliment given to him by a show-goer in New York who said it was like a magic trick, in that it starts out as a familiar type of stand-up show, but gradually evolves into a full-blown, moving theatrical production by the end of the night. And while he does fill a lot of the show’s run time with stories, songs and anecdotes on himself and facets of his life like fatherhood, McCulloch is also hoping the show’s not-so-subtle dark humor, which he has become known for through the lens of his career with Kids In The Hall , acts as sort of a bond between him and the crowd, because as he sees it, dark humor is an all-too helpful tool in making light of tough times.
“As our lives become more complicated, it really is something that gets us through the tough times in this world, and we are all connected in that,” says McCulloch. “It connects us all in a weird way like how myself and the guys in Kids In The Hall connected through the weird families we crawled out of, and the weird relationships we’ve had, and the everyday struggles we’ve had.”
And with that dark humor still intact, it’s really no wonder McCulloch and the Kids crew of Dave Foley, Scott Thompson, Kevin McDonald and Mark McKinney have seen quite a resurgence in interest and popularity in the form of their 2022 reboot and accompanying documentary, The Kids In The Hall: Comedy Punks. For McCulloch, there’s certainly a level of excitement when it comes to the idea that he and his longtime sketch comedy collaborators are continuing to garner a new audience, but it also makes perfect sense, as he feels if anything can speak to your “outsider brain” and to your own personal struggles, then it’s hopefully a timeless amusement.
“I feel like the resurgence of Kids In The Hall is partially due to the comfort it brings people to see that we’re sixty now and still getting at it, and still pretty good at what we do,” says McCulloch. “It’s nice to see that most of the people who liked us before still like us today, but it’s also cool to see, while doing this show, that there have been people coming to the show that may have never heard of Kids In The Hall but still enjoy what I’m doing.”
It’s that very mentality of carrying on and creating for the next wave of fans that has had McCulloch on cloud nine while working both with his Kids In The Hall comrades, as well as fellow Canadian comedy troupe, The Tallboyz. First, the initial meeting came to be while the quartet were performing on stages in Canada, and McCulloch worked with them, similar to the way Lorne Michaels did for the Kids back in the late ‘80s, which eventually came to lay the groundwork the troupe’s eponymous CBC sketch series with McCulloch at the helm.
While he’s quick to admit that he’s “certainly no Lorne Michaels,” McCulloch has found immense joy in helping The Tallboyz curate a stronger presence, and he’s hoping it will lead to some full-circle moments – both for him and the troupe.
“Having done three seasons of a television series with those guys, I’ve been saying to them how we need to get them back onto a live theater stage because that’s where they come from,” says McCulloch. “So many performers make it a tradition to go back to the places that made them, and there’s nothing like connecting with people in that way, and hearing a big juicy laugh or a gasp. If there’s anything that I want to promote to them, it’s ‘just keep going.’ That’s part of the pathology of myself and Kids In The Hall, and it can be in places as big and beautiful as The Wilbur, but it doesn’t have to be. You just have to keep playing.”
Throughout his time coming to Boston over the years, McCulloch has to really love and admire the scrappy attitude of the city. And while some might say that attitude is cold and unwelcoming, McCulloch can’t wait to embrace it once again and connect with another room full of people just trying to make it through.
“The most enjoyable part of all of this has been the ability to connect with people, and you do that through saying a weird joke they’ve never thought of, or telling a story they can relate to, and ultimately, having them feel a little emotional,” says McCulloch. “Some people might make fun of me using the word ‘journey’ as a big theatrical concept, but it’s fun to go on a journey with a group of people that you’re only able to be in a room with for one night.”
BRUCE MCCULLOCH :: Thursday, March 16 at The Wilbur Theatre, 246 Tremont St. in Boston, MA :: 6:30 p.m., $42 :: Advance Tickets