The world may be a hella shit show right now, but as long as Michelle Buteau is doing her thing by bringing a full heart and tight jeans all over to spread the gospel of Buteaupia, chances are we’ll be thriving after she comes to town.
Lucky for us, Buteau is making her way back to town tonight (November 3) for a fabulous night together at Medford’s Chevalier Theatre as part of her Full Heart, Tight Jeans tour. Furthermore, what makes the evening even more of a reason to celebrate is that Buteau hadn’t even planned on coming back to the area this year, but was taken back by the outpouring of support from fans and calls to return, that she couldn’t help but oblige for her local legion of baddies. It’s that level of love and support that has the New Jersey native firing on all cylinders.
“It feels good, like I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing, where I’m working hard, and I’m telling my truth,” Buteau tells Vanyaland. “When you do stand-up and you create a beautiful ass hour, you can feel like ‘this it, I have nothing left,’ and then all of a sudden, three years later, you realize you still have this comedy brain, and you can still do this, and you still want to do this. Not only does [a new hour] mean that everything is working the way it’s supposed to in my brain, body and spirit, it also means I’m upgrading.”
With her new hour, Buteau is tweaking things a little, but nothing that strays from her genuine excitement for living life to the fullest and living her truth through her art. This time, the approach may be a bit different, but for Buteau herself, she’s feeling a new kind of way in this current of her life, and not only does she want to let people in on what is making her world go ‘round, but she wants to take everyone along for the joy ride of life with her — bumps, turns and all.
“[This hour] is more of the same, but also different. From looking at my material on paper, there were some important subjects, themes and issues that I tackled that were very personal to me with the last hour, and they still are this time around, but it’s not so much ‘set up-punch-joke,’” says Buteau. “It’s more storytelling and ‘grown-woman-who-pays-her-bills-on-time’-type shit, because there’s a new confidence and a nuance that happens in your mid-40s, and that translates to my stand-up. I can see it, and I can feel it. It’s like, anyone who trains to do a 5k or marathon starts small, then slowly builds their way up to every mile. You feel it in your bones, and it hurts, and it takes a long time, but you’re stronger for it, and I feel that. I’m also tired as fuck, and don’t have time to suffer fools.”
Buteau is continuing to flex her greatest creative superpower of being genuinely present and ready for connection with her crowd, and she’s hoping that her comedy compatriots who aren’t exactly set in finding their own voice yet can crack into what truly makes them who they are and share it with the world.
Until then, she knows what’s important to her, and what’s integral to keeping her work as real and vibing in the moment as it can be.
“For me, when I finally get to be in front of people, and connect with them in a different way, it’s amazing. It’s a new opportunity. I think a lot of people put importance on things that aren’t really important like their eyebrows, portraits and making content,” says Buteau. “All of that is well and good, but nothing will ever be as good as connecting with another soul in that moment, no matter how casual or serious it might be. I’m just so grateful that people put on a decent shirt, and their good bra or underwear and come to my show, when they could go to an overpriced restaurant and go buy the drinks that smoke so they can take a picture of it. The fact that people pay money to come and see me, especially in this economy, is pretty fucking dope. I don’t mind coloring outside the lines and mucking it up, and the only rule I have is that there are no rules, so let’s have some fucking fun.”
MICHELLE BUTEAU: FULL HEART, TIGHT JEANS TOUR :: Friday, November 3 at Chevalier Theatre, 30 Forest St. in Medford, MA :: 6 p.m., $49.50 to $99.50 :: Advance Tickets