What does it mean to be fearless onstage?

On shame, pain, and vulnerability in standup.

In "Truth Is What a Comedian Makes of It," Jesse David Fox, Vulture writer and host of Good One: A Podcast About Jokes, talks about what it means to be fearless onstage. In this excerpt, he discusses Maria Bamford, Margaret Cho, and Tig Notaro:

Through their work, all three of these women confront the popular idea of what it means to be fearless onstage. Fearless is often used to describe comics unafraid of hurting people when it should apply to the comedians afraid of being hurt by people and persisting anyway. These comedians were not motivated by trying to make themselves feel better — that’s what the doctors and meds and healthy-living practices are for. Instead, they are motivated to help, even if it is by offering their audience a surrogate for their own pain or by making it easier to have conversations about difficult subjects. One of the things comedians can do to empower their audience is give them the vocabulary and language they need to best represent themselves. If what is so difficult about living with something or dealing with something is the shame associated with talking about it, stand-up transcends the conversation by being able to shout a vulnerable truth. If it’s mockable, it is manageable.

Interesting perspective and one I appreciate even if my interpretation of fearless is somewhat different.