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Monday, March 18, 2024
March 18, 2024

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Comedian destined for greatness

'Brooklyn Nine-Nine' star shows wit for Netflix special

The Columbian
Published:

Fans of Fox’s “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” already know that Chelsea Peretti, who plays daffy police department administrator Gina Linetti, is funny. But the Barnard-educated comedian — who interned at the Village Voice after college and has written for “Saturday Night Live,” “The Sarah Silverman Program” and “Parks and Recreation” — is also whip-smart.

Both qualities are on display in the stand-up concert film “Chelsea Peretti: One of the Greats.” Produced for Netflix, it’s a great showcase for Peretti’s sardonic wit, which ranges from observational humor to surreal one-liners reminiscent of Steven Wright: “I’m allergic to gluten-free food.”

It’s only occasionally that the comedian sounds like other performers. One bit of meta-comedy shows Peretti, depicted in an animated photograph of herself as a girl, critiquing her adult self’s self-deprecating humor from a seat in the audience: “You don’t need to do this. You don’t have to make yourself a punch line.” Followers of Jim Gaffigan will recognize that stand-up comic’s signature gimmick, which also includes regular criticism, delivered in the voice of a schoolmarmish audience member.

At other times, Peretti’s act brushes up against Silverman’s taboo-busting territory, as when she jokes about Jewish men and incest.

Mostly, Peretti’s voice is entirely her own, even as she mimics the vocal inflections of surfer dudes, hot girls, sex-obsessed male stand-ups, her dog and — shades of Margaret Cho — her own grandmother.

An overarching theme of the special is performer insecurity, as well as the inanity of what she does for a living. (Yes, the show’s title is a joke.) Inserted throughout what is, at heart, a pretty standard stage act are numerous shots of dogs sitting in the audience, along with a baby and a couple making out. The concert ends with the camera panning over a theater full of snoring audience members.

In reality, that’s the opposite of this audience’s reaction. To knowing chuckles, Peretti observes that stand-up comedy depends on the relatability of the stand-up comic, joking that she worries about how TV success, fame and wealth might be changing her.

“Nothing really feels like it costs anything,” she whines. “Is that relatable?”

The 36-year-old comic seems destined for greater things. Yet on her upward trajectory, Peretti still comes across as the brainy girl next door who can deliver belly laughs.

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