Meet Jen Curcio of I Love You: The Show in Hollywood

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jen Curcio.

Jen, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
When I was four-years-old, I was obsessed with Eddie Murphy and wanted to be on Saturday Night Live with him. After college and when I finally got a job that paid a decent wage, I searched for long-form improv classes because that’s how Tina Fey and Amy Poehler got into comedy.

At the time I lived in Philadelphia, PA and there was only one option and that was The Philly Improv Theater (PHIT). I completed the first two levels of classes and auditioned for a house improv team there the day after my improv 201 class show. Much to my surprise, I got on a team and was enamored.

I did as many shows as I could in Philly, I also expanded to sketch and comedic storytelling. While doing that, I started commuting to NYC for classes at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater. In 2014, a good friend in comedy moved to Los Angeles and asked if I wanted to join her. Something you should also know is that I was deep in the closet while living in Philadelphia, so the thought of moving to a more progressive city to pursue comedy (and finally come out) appealed to me greatly. So I did it!

A group of people from PHIT drove out to LA to make the move, which was a lifesaver. I don’t think I would have faired as well as I did being 3,000 miles away from home without them. Two days after my arrival, I signed up for improv 301 at the UCB and finish the improv curriculum. Oh, I also came out of the closet…finally. My comedy became so much more robust after coming out because I could be completely vulnerable on stage and share every detail of myself. I felt a sense of happiness I never imagined was possible. I know that’s cliché, but it’s true.

It was in 401 improv class that I met my indie improv team, Power Lunch. I performed with them for a year before deciding to focus on comedic storytelling and start a show with my teammate and fellow storyteller, Cara Meyers. The Sleepover Show was a fun, comedic storytelling that was sleepover themed. Performers wore pajamas and told stories they would only share with close friends at a sleepover. At the same time, I had the opportunity to record a pilot episode of a podcast where I got to interview all sorts of successful people about their coming out stories. Todd Glass so graciously shared his coming out story on the pilot, and I sold it to Feral Audio. Unfortunately, it proved to be a false start and I put podcasting on the back burner for a couple of years. It was hard because I didn’t realize there could be false starts. I had never really taken such a big risk in terms of selling something I made, and I hadn’t developed a thick skin yet. People rarely talk about their false starts, and I think we should.

I continued co-hosting and producing The Sleepover Show for three years but wanted a bigger challenge, so I put Sleepover to bed and created I Love You: The Show at Junior High LA. Lucé Tomlin-Brenner is the co-creator and co-host, Christiana Morgenroth was our producer for the debut show and it was magical. It is an honor working with such talented women on the show. They brought my hopes and dreams for a show to the next level. We pay our performers and give the audience an experience, not just a show. Currently, it is a quarterly show because we really do want to blow it out for the best show possible.

Recently, I started co-hosting one of my favorite variety shows, The Copper Still Comedy Hour. I always loved performing on the show and watching it, so when I was asked to be a co-host I was thrilled. One of my teammates (Clark Canez) from Power Lunch and I just recorded the first episode of our podcast, A Touch from the Past. The concept of the pod is an audio tour of a museum of oddities. Each week we discuss two creepy artifacts, their origin and how they still carry through to influence the present.

If I had to sum it up, I would say I got where I am today by having really good, brilliant people in my life. The people I met five years ago in 301 improv class are people I still work with today. Some of them are like family now. When I visit home in Philadelphia, I teach improv workshops at PHIT. Also, understanding when to let a project go and create something new has help me so much. Sure, I wanted to cry and whine about the podcast deal with Feral Audio falling flat, but I knew I had to move on and create new things.

Has it been a smooth road?
I would say I’m lucky, I know it could have been a much harder road. Like I said before, I came out of the closet after moving to Los Angeles. That wasn’t easy for me. I’ve lost some family and gained some. In Los Angeles, so many people are transplants and I think it’s a city of chosen families because of that.

One of my first relationships after coming out was an abusive one and naively, I had no idea same-sex relationships could be abusive. (I know, that sounds absolutely ridiculous.) I was fortunate enough to a have a circle of friends who stuck by me, despite becoming very isolated from everyone. They also held an intervention to make me realize how much I needed to get out of the relationship, and I did! Not only was being in that relationship detrimental to my emotional health, it took me away from comedy for a few months. I’m lucky I was able to pick up where I left off and didn’t lose anything forever.

Another obstacle was having my podcast deal fall through. I was also naive about that, in thinking if you sign a contract everything is good to go. For about 30 minutes, I almost quit my day job. Speaking of day jobs, the struggle of knowing when to risk one to jump on a creative project or take a big opportunity was an obstacle for me. Shortly after I moved here, I was asked to travel for a show an open for one of my favorite comedians in my hometown. I had just started a day job as a sock designer and decided to not go. I regret that to this day! I don’t think it would have created more opportunities for me, but it would have been awesome and I appreciated them asking.

We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I’m a comedian. I cohost two comedy shows and one podcast. Although I dabble in all comedy, I would say I’m known for storytelling. The thing I am most proud of is I Love You: The Show. We pay our performers, which is actually rare in comedy. It’s also such a polished show and great experience. We host it at Junior High LA and they have such great artwork that acts as a backdrop for our show. I also love art, so for me to combine both my passions (art & comedy) it’s a dream come true. Some of my college professors in art school told me to drop out because all I seemed interested in was making people laugh, so it feels like I got both things.

I’m also very proud of my new podcast, A Touch from the Past. It’s a highly researched podcast and if you know comedy people, you can guess how hard it is for my cohost and I to buckle down and do all that research.

Is our city a good place to do what you do?
I think LA is a great place for all forms of comedy. In the five years since I moved here, so many new shows have popped up and started including so many different forms of comedy. Personally, I feel lucky that I got to start comedy in Philadelphia because I was definitely not ready for a bigger city yet. For people starting out in our city, I would suggest taking classes and networking. The people you meet in class will be people you grow with in your career, and some will also be great friends!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jencurcio/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jencurcio

Image Credit:
The photo of me hugging my cohost, Lucé Tomlin-Brenner – Photo credit: Christiana Morgenroth; Photo of me in black and red flannel – Chris Korbel; Photo of my playing kickball – Varsity Gay League

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