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Meet the artists putting the North on the comedy map WRITTEN BY ALYSSA FORD | PHOTOGRAPHY OPPOSITE PAGE BY GAVIN GLEN
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t’s Saturday night at Charlie Brown’s Bar in Superior, Wisconsin, and Danielle Thralow is impossible to miss. In a sea of flannel and Carhartt, she’s rocking a saffron-yellow figure-hugging Hervé Léger dress and teetering beige espadrilles–looking fresh and summery and so hilariously overdressed for this rough-edged drinkery that it could almost be its own bit: “I see I didn’t quite make the mark on the Wisconsin dress code…” Thralow (pronounced “trah-low”) is not just hilarious on the stage—she has also become the beating heart of the North’s comedy scene. As a regular host on Saturday nights at Dubh Linn Irish Brew Pub’s Pro Comedy Tour in Duluth, she encourages a growing community of talented local comics. Recording thousands of videos and countless photos at live shows, Thralow is creating a network that connects performers across the North. By helping local comics with opportunities to perform in paid shows, she also organizes comedy events and recommends breakout performers to other producers. Thralow says that in the North, there is “an audience for all types of humor.” Her fellow northern comics who’ve made it big and are profiled in this issue—Maria Bamford, Charlie Berens, and Mary Mack—effectively “find humor in the everyday life of the North stereotypes and connect that hilariously to humans worldwide,” she explains. “Someone in Hawaii can get an inside joke about deer hunting or the pronunciation of sauna.” Take Maria Bamford, whose surreal character work and pitch-perfect impressions have earned her a national following. Or Mary Mack, whose rapid-fire storytelling and signature Wisconsin accent feel like a North Woods fever dream in the best possible way. And then there’s Charlie Berens, who’s turned “ope” and “you betcha” into an art form. “All three create memorable characters as storytellers,” Thralow notes. “Maria Bamford is a master of impersonation. Through her storytelling and voices, Mary Mack brings many personas to life, and Charlie Berens has beloved roles.”
What makes their comedy special? According to Thralow, it’s their ability to create nearly infinite twists: “Maria Bamford’s takes spin into the bizarre, Mary Mack’s stories are fantastically whimsical, and Charlie Berens creates outlandish situations and exaggerations.” It’s about crafting characters and stories that feel both uniquely northern and somehow familiar to everyone. LATER THAT SAME NIGHT when Thralow bounds onto the stage in her yellow dress, she warms up the crowd with some gentle ribbing about the eternal Packers-Vikings rivalry and people wearing camo to the grocery store. Then she goes for it: “If you couldn’t tell, I am a transgender woman. And I would like to say that I remember when I was 12 years old, watching the 1976 Montreal Olympics with Bruce Jenner when he won the gold medal in the decathlon. He appeared on Wheaties boxes everywhere—he was the world’s greatest athlete. I mean back then, what little child categorized as male at birth didn’t want to grow up to be like Bruce Jenner?” She pauses intentionally, then exclaims, “I finally did it!” The laughter erupts, genuine and deep. She even got a few chuckles from the table of guys that were earlier discussing their MAGA-flavored political views. At the end of her set, raising her plastic cup of pilsner in a toast, Thralow grins: “Here’s to Superior. Thank you for not killing me.” Dark humor aside, that last bit isn’t entirely a joke. As one of only two transgender comedians in Minnesota, Thralow has faced her share of genuine threats. But here’s the kicker: she doesn't need to do this. As a successful entrepreneur, Thralow could easily be lounging on a beach somewhere, flipping through glossy magazines. Instead, she’s here in the North, regularly bringing laughter to far-flung places like Roseau, Biwabik, and Warroad, while also supporting other comics in the process. “This is my little way to change the world,” she says, “bringing comedy out there, and being open and funny about being transgender.” Read on to learn more about these artists who have helped put the North on the comedy map.
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