Today we’d like to introduce you to Leah Bonnema.
Hi Leah, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I was born and raised in rural Maine so I know things like what to do when a male moose is aggressive during rutting season (I’d be great on an apocalypse team). I always loved storytelling but, uncomfortably, I always seemed to have the ability to share inappropriate anecdotes at inappropriate times. Thankfully, after college (I went to McGill University in Montreal), I moved to New York City and found stand-up comedy. NYC is a dream city for stand-up, you can get up (do gigs) multiple times a night and are surrounded by people constantly honing their craft. I was so very grateful and excited to have many wonderful opportunities while in New York. I got to perform on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert, host a bodice ripper book club for Chris Gethard Presents, feature at many festivals, tour the US with Lady Parts Justice and tour overseas for the troops. I very much love New York and feel like I got my skills there but I’ve always had a fantasy about moving to Los Angeles.
As a kid, you see pictures of palm trees and children going to school with outdoor lockers and you think, how could this be real?! During the pandemic, I needed to put my brain somewhere outside of our 400-square-foot apartment and find some solace, so I lost myself in writing a comedy holiday romance novel called ‘The Holiday Breakdown.’ The main character is a writer in LA, AND, she has a dog. Then about two years ago, I said to the fiancé, ‘We must move to southern California and get this dog dream life.’ So, here I am, in Hollywood, doing comedy! And, of course, we’ve adopted a dog. I’ve even seen some outdoor lockers. Dream life!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Are there even smooth roads?! I believe they must be a myth. Stand-Up comedy is rife with struggle. You have to get better publicly. It’s the only job I can think of where you’re like, I need to see if this works, let me try it out live, in front of a group of people. It’s a profession where one must get comfortable with being uncomfortable. Also, you can have put in years and years of your life, doing it all the time, and when you go to file your taxes, the accountant will look at your income statement and be like, is that a profession or is it a hobby? Sick burn. When younger comics ask me advice I always say, find a good therapist, it’s going to be a long haul. (And, get up on stage as much as possible, whenever possible.) It’s also a business full of rejection. Comics have to work on being thick-skinned publicly but in private there’s a lot of laying on floors, watching LOTRs and cry-eating marzipan (wow – that was specific). But, for me, there is nothing like the feeling of performing live, getting to talk about the things you want to talk about, and making people laugh. It’s definitely worth all the breakdowns.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
One of the wonderful things about comedy, in my opinion, is that when people share their stories/thoughts/observations from their point of view, it will always be unique. Being the most yourself –> that’s what people have to bring to the stage. I think, for me, that is being vulnerable and talking about embarrassing moments, turning my anxieties into jokes, and bringing all of me to that: my beliefs, my relationship, my love of animals and books, my small town meets big city-ness and my G*d given ability to turn any situation into a total mess. And oddly, the more specific one is about themselves, the more I think other people relate. It’s hard to see oneself clearly but I think I also bring a friendly conversational-ness to my stand-up, even when I am talking about dicey or difficult things. Most proud of? I am proud that I am still doing stand-up and am always trying to get better and better. I am proud that I have found a great group of comedy friends and been invited to work on projects that are meaningful and hopefully do some good. I am also proud that I have taken my love of storytelling and humor and am moving it into other forms: our podcast Were You Raised By Wolves, scripts, shorts, and books. I am also proud that I haven’t fallen apart entirely from all of the instability. JkJkJkJk. Yikes!
What do you like and dislike about the city?
I am still totally enamored by Los Angeles. I regularly yell out, “Look at that! Fruit growing in a yard! Are you kidding me?!” When the sun is setting and the palm trees are silhouetted, I can’t get enough. I love hiking in the canyons, I love that people bring their dogs everywhere, I love Ralph’s. I had never been to a Pollo Loco before, amazing. I just went to The Magic Castle for the first time, incredible. Lacey Jane (my pup) and I are working our way around all the parks and dog beaches. I also love how stand-up here is in so many random places. This week alone I have performed in a bookstore, a backyard, a club, and tonight, I’m in a private building entryway. That’s real. I’d say my least favorite thing in this city is turning left when there is no light. SUCH a metaphor for life.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.LeahBonnema.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/LeahBonnema
- Facebook: www.Facebook.com/LeahBonnema
- Linkedin: https://linktr.ee/LeahBonnema
- Twitter: www.twitter.com/LeahBonnema
- Youtube: www.youtube.com/LeahBonnema
- SoundCloud: www.WereYouRaisedByWolves.com
- Other: shorturl.at/FLUY8
Image Credits
The Chris Gethard Presents photos (I’m wearing a bathrobe and it’s on set –> there are two) are by Arin Sang-urai (@photojuice) The Ocean Comedy Show pic is Nick Torchon. The Colbert pic is CBS and the podcast, Were You Raised By Wolves is Apple. The other pics are shots from my phone.
