Title: Writer/Performer, currently appearing in I Look Like An Egg, But I Identify as a Cookie an interactive baking comedy
Hometown: Niagara-on-the-Lake (Canada) now San Francisco
1. How did you come up with the idea of baking onstage?
I had done stand-up for a long time and I was trying to figure out what to do with my hands for 90 minutes. I always found it comforting to bake. It's relaxing and helps me get into the creative flow. Then it kept growing. Somewhere along the line I realized I could structure the stories with the recipe.
2. Where do the cookies served at the end of you show come from?
I bake all of them fresh the day of the show. For the integrity of the show I think it would be wrong not to. It's very soothing and I rehearse the show that way. I would prefer to bake them all live. My original vision was to have 20 easy bake ovens, but you can only make so much with a light bulb! I almost did the show in a place that sells appliances with a wall of ovens.
3. What were meals like for you growing up?
The Friday night Shabbat salon dinners had a transformative effect on my life. Eating a meal once a week with 16 people is what helped keep our family together. It was the highlight of my life growing up. I made little shows for my family with my cousins. It's the time when we were together, and sharing. My work is about sharing and connecting. I think food connects us. It's a basic thing. It's what I try to do in the show.
4. What are your favorite bakeries?
I love a good boulangerie or patisserie. I love the apricot danish at Nabolom Bakery in the East Bay. I used to go to the patisserie on California at Fillmore. I love the s'more thing at Citizen Cake.