Kristen Schaal can read a phone book and captivate a crowd. She can chew a banana and keep us glued to YouTube. And, as she proves in the role of “Mel” on the wildly silly HBO series Flight of the Conchords, she can stalk a New Zealand folk duo and make us giggle. The Northwestern grad returns to Chicago Friday 30 to headline a solo show that combines her stand-up and admittedly esoteric sketch material. We caught up with Schaal to ask her about her work on Flight, South Park, and (almost) getting booted from a Chicago bar.
I heard you just were a story consultant on South Park.
You never have to type on a keyboard at all. You just sit in a room with other writing consultants and Trey Parker and Matt Stone. They’re like, “What if this happens?” You just kind of build the story together. It’s really for whatever tickles Matt and Trey’s brain. Then they run off and write it. It was really fun. I felt physically exhausted at the end of the day because I was thinking so hard.
You’re among some impressive names that have come out of Northwestern’s Mee-Ow comedy group—Seth Meyers, Julia Louis-Dreyfuss.... What do you remember about working with that group?
I remember we drank a lot of beer. So much. You felt like a rock star when you were in Mee-Ow because everyone would come to your shows.
Did you guys go out at all?
Well, I was so broke in college that I could never afford to go to any bars. One time I tried to meet my friends at a bar and I took my own beer in. It was a honey brown ale—like a totally obscure one. And the bartender just grabbed it out of my hand and was like, “Get out!” Then I cried. I didn’t get booted, but he made a big scene. I felt like a big dick.
Mel in Flight is an obsessed fan of the titular band. Have you ever been an obsessed fan of anything?
I’ve never been obsessed to the point of Mel’s level. But I really love Charlie Chaplin. And when New Kids on the Block came on the scene, I was into it.
I saw you listed Joey McIntyre as an influence on your MySpace page.
Oh my God. Yeah. I was feeling things I had never felt before when I saw him perform.
Have you encountered any obsessed fans of your own?
[Laughs] No. Nobody’s that into it. Thank God. There’s been some marriage proposals on MySpace, but that’s it. I don’t know how serious they are. It’s all so weird.
Schaal lands at the Lakeshore Theater Friday 30.
— Kevin J. Allen
