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Gary Gulman Clings to Grandiloquence
In his Off Broadway show, the comedian too often confuses attention for acceptance.
There’s Frankenstein and the joy and mortification of pedantry; the awkward dislocation of being an unusually verbose kid; and sections on whether you actually have to be grateful for the trauma that shapes you, the transformative self-expression of writing, and Gulman’s parents and their marriage, plus a long tangent on post-grunge supergroups. He’s especially fascinating on the particular textures of a 1970s childhood, an area he also discussed in his 2019 comedy special, The Great Depresh, and his ability to observe, resent, criticize, and lovingly portray his parents gives those portions of Grandiloquent an added emotional oomph. The run of post-grunge supergroup material requires going on at great length so that Gulman can make his point — excessive displays of knowledge are a shield against underestimation and critique — but in order to continue for long enough to be funny, the joke unbalances the last half-hour of the production.
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