Crush of the week: Tig Notaro

Last week I was doing the dishes while watching Tig, a new Netflix documentary about comedian Tig Notaro. I found myself laughing and then crying, at first softly and then suddenly very hard.

Do you know who Tig Notaro is? I was dimly aware of her philosophy and science podcast, Professor Blastoff (which ended a few weeks ago), and I’d seen her in Lake Bell’s downbeat comedy In A World, but, like so many new fans, I came to her work after a spectacular standup set she did three years ago in Los Angeles. “Hello, good evening,” Notaro says at the start of what would become the Grammy-nominated Tig Notaro Live. “I have cancer.” What followed was a set of immense beauty and uncommonly raw honesty. In it, she presented her reality: terrified but hopeful.

Two years later, after a double mastectomy, another set became legendary after she spent half of it topless, maintaining her deadpan delivery throughout.

Notaro’s quiet presence makes you lean in and really listen. Her material is wide-ranging and often deeply silly (see Stool Movement). Now 44, she has an amazing face, like a startled woodland creature. Her voice is deep and steady, punctuated by self-contained and utterly infectious chuckles. Truly, I thought, watching her in my kitchen, she is a complete delight.

Tig, the film, is as open and honest as the woman: we see her fall in love (with her In A World co-star), try for a baby and begin to perform again. If, like me, you’re playing catch-up with her output, you could start with her NPR podcasts and work backwards. With Tig Notaro, it really is a case of better late than never.