How do people interested in working in the entertainment business catch their big break? Who better to answer such a complex question than the talented and accomplished comedian, actor and writer Hannibal Buress?
“If you want to do anything, you got to go do it.” he said during an interview with The Daily Cardinal. “Perform a lot, write a lot, make yourself better. Use the Internet, make videos, create content.”
Buress is currently performing stand-up comedy across the nation, making a stop in Madison at the Barrymore Theater Feb. 21. When he’s not on tour, Buress co-hosts “The Eric André Show” on Adult Swim, makes cameos on the Comedy Central show “Broad City,” voice acts on the new FX series “Chozen” and puts on his own comedy/music hybrid show in Brooklyn, N.Y. at the Knitting Factory. With such an extensive resume, Buress verifies how important it is for one to showcase their talents in order to succeed.
The last time Buress was in Madison, he was touring for his critically acclaimed comedy album, Animal Furnace. When asked what fans should expect in his return, he said, “drug stuff, partying, food, new businesses, FBI investigations, conspiracy theories, 9/11 was an inside job.” No matter the topic, Buress finds a way to inject his quick-wit into the conversation immediately. It’s this style of humor that landed him jobs at “SNL” and “30 Rock” as a writer.
The transition from such a tight-scripted show like “30 Rock” to a more improvised, loose-scripted show like “The Eric Andre Show” proved less of a challenge for Buress and more as a new, fun experience.
“It was fun, man. It was different. On a sitcom, you don’t really have time to mess around since there are so many moving parts,” Buress said. “At ‘Eric André,’ we have an idea of what we want to do, and just do it, and figure out what’s funny during the editing.”
What did Eric André do that got his show on television? Buress explains, “He did live versions of it, and decided to film it on his own. It got around to Adult Swim. It’s weird, if you tried to pitch that to someone, it probably wouldn’t get picked up, but he showed people it and now it’s going in its third season.”
Another show Buress is part of, “Broad City,” has similar roots. “They did improv and sketch. They made their own thing, made it a web series. It got a lot of attention, someone put them in contact with Amy Poehler, and that’s how they got going,” Buress told The Daily Cardinal.
Along with “The Eric André Show” and “Broad City,” Buress voice-acts the character Crisco on FX’s “Chozen.”
“Voice-over work is fun because I get to watch the character happen. I’m happy to be part of the project,” he said. When asked what is more difficult, voice-over work or onscreen acting, Buress told us, “It’s really easy to do voice-over work. TV has a lot of moving parts. If one thing goes wrong, you have to reshoot. For voice-overs, I just go in the studio and record lines. An episode takes about 45 minutes to an hour [for me] to make.”
Working on so many TV shows, while very impressive, begs the question, on what TV show would he like to have been on, past or present? Buress admits, “When I was a kid, I wanted to be on ‘Full House.’ I didn’t even want to act; I just wanted to be Stephanie’s boyfriend.”
To see more of Hannibal Buress, watch “The Eric André Show” Thursday nights on Adult Swim, “Broad City” Wednesdays on Comedy Central, and “Chozen” Monday nights on FX. Furthermore, come see him perform at the Barrymore Theater Feb. 21st at 8p.m., where audiences should expect an unprecedented amount of roaring laughter and brilliantly executed jokes.
