Natasha Leggero made a powerful point about the double standards in comedy during a recent show with the famously shirtless Bert Kreischer.
Last week, both comedians performed at the Hollywood Improv. “The Machine” went on first and ripped off his shirt mid-set, a frequent occurrence. Next up was Leggero, who, according to TMZ, “came up with the idea to copy Bert’s bare-chested routine since he was such a hard act to follow.” She later wrote on Instagram, “bert took his shirt off so i did too.”
Leggero kept her plan a secret because she wanted to go with her gut and didn’t want anyone to try to talk her out of it… She put it, “If the boys can do it, why can’t the girls?”
Apparently the comedy club asked Leggero not to share photos from her set, but “tmz already did so f it,” she wrote. “Should female comics be able to do the same things as male comics? Because ive also been thinking about trying to fuck my opener.” You can see the Instagram post here.
Leggero’s set was applauded on social media by an all-star lineup of comedians, including Sarah Silverman (“Queen”), Margaret Cho (“ICONIC”), and Melissa Villasenor (“This rocks! You rock!”). In response to Leggero’s joke about sleeping with the opening act, Beth Stelling wrote, “You could always try to f*ck your opener, and if they say no, unfollow them on social media.”
How did Kreischer respond? He’s a fan.
(Via TMZ)