Pemberton Fest: Maria Bamford finds her balance
By Kelsey Klassen
Maria Bamford’s new Netflix show is nothing like her life. Rather, it’s loosely like her life was, and nothing like it is now.
With a little help from her friends Pam Brady (South Park) and Mitch Hurwitz (Arrested Development), the beloved standup comedian, voice actress and Pemberton Music Festival comedy headliner has gleefully laid out her neuroses in Lady Dynamite – a poignant, absurd and hilarious look at mental illness, shown through the exaggerated lens of the woman who lived it.
In the show, Bamford plays three fictionalized versions of herself: the shrill, overconfident, oversaturated and charmingly manic Past Maria; Blue Maria, living at home with her parents in Duluth after an emotional breakdown, spending her days as a day patient at a psychiatric hospital; and Present Maria, haplessly trying to find a balance between the two.
The series is making waves for its unflinching portrayal of mental illness, while at the same time remaining lightheartedly bizarre and entertaining. And while reenacting that time in her life could have been a potential trigger, Bamford explains that making Lady Dynamite was nothing but a fun and collaborative learning experience.
“I’m a stable person now, with meds, and so it’s just acting,” adds the star, known for her cult comedy special Maria Bamford: The Special Special Special, which she shot in her living room with just her parents as the audience, and hit web series, The Maria Bamford Show.
“I haven’t been manic in the years since I’ve been on medication, which is about four now. And I think it’s a much better way of life. Though slightly boring!” she admits.
In an incredibly layered 2014 portrait by The New York Times, however, Bamford’s years-long battle with anxiety, OCD, suicidal and violent thoughts, over-work, and Type-II bipolar disorder – which all came to a head in 2011 with the accidental death of her beloved pug, Blossom – were revealed to be a near-fatal struggle for the star.
It’s not the standard makings of a smash comedy, but the ordeals have often served as fodder for Bamford’s unique, self-deprecating standup routines, and provided a leaping off point for Hurwitz and Brady to actually push the somewhat clichéd autobiographical comedy genre (see Louie, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and Netflix’s own Master of None) into new territory.
“A nice thing about Netflix is they want the writers of the show to get a voice,” says Bamford of the online streaming service, which has become a go-to source for binge-worthy original content. “Whereas network television in the past […] kind of wants a more likeable character, a perceived ‘marketable’ character or marketable story, rather than just tell the story and give the comic a voice as it is.”
She also jokes, though, of the data-hoarding corporate behemoth, that even after filming the show, she still doesn’t know what goes on at Netflix HQ.
“They are very mysterious…” she chuckles. “[Netflix chief content officer] Ted Sarandos is very friendly – everyone is very friendly – but I don’t know… I somehow imagine that there’s this giant computer that’s just keeping track of all the secrets and it’s just tons and tons of data from all over the world. Maybe space!” she exclaims. “Maybe they’re taking readings on Mars and the moon to see how programming’s going out there.”
No matter how they do it, the fact is that Netflix has another hit on its hands. Threads from Bamford’s life and standup material provide the stitching to the show – her dark, unwanted thoughts, her unwavering love of pugs, her soul-crushing stint as a corporate spokesperson – but then the writers’ room has had its way with unforgettable supporting characters like agent/emotional tyrant Karen Grisham (SNL’s Ana Gasteyer), fourth-wall bending cutaways with celebrity guests like Patton Oswalt, and recurring gags that will remind many of Arrested Development at its best.
Despite Lady Dynamite’s popularity since it was released in May, though, the show isn’t really top of mind for Bamford when reached at her home in Southern California. Instead, in her trademark tremulous stutter, Bamford makes pleasant chit chat about a nightmare bathroom renovation, couples’ pizza parties, and her elderly pug cartel.
She’s in a good place now, she says, and her latest material, which she hopes to roll out soon in a new special, reflects that.
“I just got married last year, which has been wonderful,” she says, giddily. (Bamford met her husband, visual artist Scott Marvel Cassidy, on OkCupid after changing her profile name to “Hogbook”.) “And that’s been really exciting, because I’ve never had a relationship last over a year, and we’ve been together three years. It’s kind of a miraculous experience,” she laughs, “and I think I’ll talk about that.
“And yeah, I don’t have as much stuff about [mental illness],” she continues. “I mean, I hope I can write new material. It’s not my desire to have any sort of symptoms in order to get more material, though. I’m feeling really good, and so there’s no need. I don’t believe the whole thing about somebody having to suffer to create important work.”
In fact, Bamford, who will be performing this week at Pemberton alongside the likes of Cheech and Chong, Craig Robinson & the Nasty Delicious and the Lucas Brothers (who make a few comically sardonic appearances on Lady Dynamite as well), has had the epiphany that she doesn’t need to suffer to create work, period.
One of the themes of Lady Dynamite is Bamford’s attempt to be “less ambitious,” so as to not get overwhelmed by the cannibalistic pace of Hollywood. In real life, it’s a strategy that’s worked.
“I am definitely happier,” she says. “Sometimes I’ll get anxious and, you know, fear of missing out. Like, ‘Why am I not doing a tour of Brazil right now??’” she jokes, her voice doing accent gymnastics. “‘That’s the place to be…’ Or, you know… ‘I gotta be in a magazine,” she riffs, switching to a southern drawl, “‘cuz when people are in magazines they’re happier. Isn’t that one of the main things they’ve gotten from all those happiness studies?’” she asks, sassily.
“It’s okay, you know? I took the weekend off and my husband and I went out for dinner with some friends, and then kind of had a pizza party and just hung out with people. It’s just so nice.
“It’s not very ambitious, but it’s wonderful.”
Published July 2016, Westender
http://www.westender.com/arts-culture/pemberton-fest-maria-bamford-finds-her-balance-1.2301175