When Tig Notaro took part in Connecticut Forum’s “Laughter, Anyone?” event at The Bushnell a few weeks ago, she got her first laughs within seconds of strolling onstage. With her natural grace and wit, she held her own against the most loquacious Marc Maron and the more exhibitionistic Fred Armisen. She had the crowd roaring at her deadpan comebacks. She circled back to catchphrases and created recurring jokes, using references from earlier on in the discussion. She even did some low-key physical shtick, using the forum’s giant projection screen to draw attention to the back of her head.
It was a beautifully balanced, carefully calibrated appearance. And this was just Notaro in an informal chat, essentially just being herself.
Notaro’s everything a modern-day comedian should be: versatile, quick on her feet, smart, incisive, skeptical, progressive, aware of the world around her and her place in it. She stars in the semi-autobiographical TV series “One Mississippi” on Amazon Prime, but she made her name as a special sort of stand-up comedian, ruminating on such uncomfortable topics as her own cancer diagnosis. She uses quiet irony the way other comedians use double-takes.
Tig Notaro returns to College Street Music Hall, 238 College St., New Haven (which she first played shortly after the venue opened two and a half years ago) for one of her well-honed stand-up sets Dec. 10 at 8 p.m. $35-$40. 203-867-2000, collegestreetmusichall.com.
