It’s almost here! Tomorrow night, some of Seattle’s very funniest people will perform as part of The Stranger’s annual Undisputable Champions of Comedy showcase at Washington Hall.
For the past couple of weeks, I’ve been sharing interviews with all of this year’s participants, and today’s final installment is a special two-for-one, featuring both handyman-turned-comedian Burl Dirkman and his alter-ego (and co-host of the Joketellers Union with Emmett Montgomery), Brett Hamil.
After getting to know Burl (and getting some good tips about impending ant season—those little fuckers are everywhere!), stop getting overwhelmed by all the bad news on the internet, and spend this sunny afternoon catching up on the rest of the comedians: Scott Losse, Danielle Radford, Cheri Hardman, Benny Jensen, Min Lin, and Rachel Aflleje. We talk about dogs, Real Housewives, Death Cab for Cutie, Taco Time Crisp Burritos, among other very important topics.
If we want our comedy scene to thrive, we’ve got to support the people putting in the work to keep it going. I’ll see you at Washington Hall!
Describe your comedy in five words.
Burl: Discover your wistful handyman quotient.
Now that you’ve been declared an Undisputed Champion of Comedy, is there anyone in your life who said you wouldn’t make it, and you would now like to take this opportunity to rub it in their stupid face?
Burl: Probably Craig Venezia, the heir to a regional HVAC empire in southeast South Carolina, who wooed away my first love, Michelle. He told a bunch of people at our 25-year high school reunion that I was, quote, “the smelliest of the Dirkman boys.”
Who would win in an arm-wrestling competition: Brett Hamil, a local political comic artist who co-hosts Joketelllers Union at Clock-Out Lounge with Emmett Montgomery, or Burl Dirkman, a hardware store-loving man who has a lot of thoughts about woven belts and patio furniture?
Burl: I’d give myself the edge there because while I was toting 80-pound bundles of asphalt shingles up rickety ladders onto hurricane-ravaged roofs in 99-degree heat, he was off at college learning about semiotics and French existentialism so he could do good opinions on websites.
This one’s for Brett: Do you remember your first time doing stand-up? Were you hooked right away?
Brett: The first time I did comedy, in 2006 at Giggles in the U-District (now Laughs), I got a couple tepid chuckles, which was enough to hook me—actually, total silence might’ve hooked me even more. The idea that you could figure out how to think stuff up in your head that would reliably elicit laughter from strangers and make them feel better for a moment seemed to me a superpower worth pursuing, which rings even truer every time the world gets a little bit more horrible.
Okay, back to Burl for this one, because it’s about to be ant season in Seattle. Do you have any household tips on how to prepare for that?
Burl: The most important preparations you can make for ant season are emotional. Having ants in your house is a lot like being a stepdad: you’re presiding over these small creatures whose ways are not your own, and who may be suspicious of you and your priorities. I try to let the ants know that I support them following their path no matter what, though I may sometimes be disappointed and personally inconvenienced by their choices.
Seattle has lost some great comedy spots recently—Here-After closed, and Rendezvous, which had some regular showcases and open mics, changed owners. With that, where is your favorite place to see comedy in Seattle right now?
Burl: I don’t really go to comedy shows other than Joketellers Union at the Clock-Out, where they let me get up there and talk about whatever’s weighing on my heart that week. If I’m looking for a fun night out, I’m more inclined to take my girlfriend Amy to go see tribute bands at the local casinos. Recent favorites include: Indigo Guys, Cocteau Twinks, Discounting Crows, DILF Leppard, and Faith Some More.
See Burl Dirkman perform at The Stranger’s Undisputable Champions of Comedy at Washington Hall on April 4, 7:30 pm, 21+. Tickets available here.
