Many of you may know her from the Chelsea Lately show, while some may not even know who she is—which is a true shame. The witty, and humorously crude, Heather McDonald stopped in Atlanta from July 8-10.
Her performance at The Punchline comedy club was, in part, a promotional tour for her book titled .
Before this show, I had never been to The Punchline. I was expecting a large, open room with tiered, movie-theater-like seating, similar to a venue like the Tabernacle. What I got was a small, extremely intimate setting that was so much better than I could have imagined.
The Punchline feels like your typical bar. There are small, wooden tables packed tightly to each end of the room, artwork on the walls (including photos of many of the comedians who have performed there) and dim, romantic lighting. The big difference is that here, there is a stage directly at the front of the room.
Her opening act was a young man named Will Marfori. He was extremely witty, and much of his material consisted of “typical” relationship problems: guys being jerks and women being bossy. Something that set him apart from other comedians I’ve seen: he has cerebral palsy. And as odd as it may sound, he used that to his advantage.
He most certainly had no problem making jokes about his disability. He mentioned that if he ever gets pulled over while driving, there’s no chance he can avoid going to jail because he always slurs his speech and can never walk in a straight line. He was far funnier and more genuine than most comedians I’ve seen.
After about 30 to 45 minutes of laughing until I felt like crying, McDonald took the stage, and I wondered whether my stomach muscles could take any more of it.
Her material included fabulous impressions of Drew Barrymore, the extremely classy Real Housewives television show and the many hardships of motherhood.
Before the show, I had only ever seen her on Chelsea Lately, and I always thought she was a funny and witty lady. However, seeing her live was a completely different experience. Although her short appearances Chelsea Handler’s show are good, I never realized just how funny she really is until I saw her at The Punchline. McDonald is extremely refreshing in that she isn’t afraid to push the envelope with her material.
She did a spot-on impression of Drew Barrymore’s CoverGirl LashBlast Mascara campaign. Her facial expressions were priceless (and of course exaggerated) and she mimicked Barrymore’s voice impeccably. McDonald also impersonated Celine Dion and poked fun at Dion and René Angélil’s relationship. For the ladies in the audience who were even somewhat familiar with the Real Housewives series, McDonald’s jokes about the classy ladies on the show were both hilarious and right on target.
There was a distance of less than ten feet between the stage and me, so sitting at the table, drinking beer and listening to an extremely funny lady’s performance was one of the most enjoyable evenings in recent memory.
Both McDonald and Marfori have videos on YouTube that I would highly recommend for your viewing pleasure. And if you haven’t seen McDonald on Chelsea Lately on E!, fix that error pronto.
When Heather McDonald comes through Atlanta again, she is a must-see.