Mina Hartong Soars to New Comedy Heights
by Steve Desroches
During the global health calamity of the Covid pandemic, it was hard to maintain a sense of humor. The severity of the virus, the chaos in the response, and the uncertainty and isolation all created a stew of anxiety that accumulated as the pandemic dragged on. Indeed, it is in those times where comedy can be an important and soothing salve. For comedian Mina Hartong the pandemic, like for many people, initially appeared to be a frightening moment that ultimately ended up with a gleaming silver lining. Hartong’s gigs all dried up and she was relegated to the difficult task of performing stand-up virtually. For an art form that is all about connecting with an audience, that is hard to do via Zoom. But when Hartong and her wife decided to leave their tiny New York City apartment for Palm Springs, where they would have more space and fresh air, she also found, surprisingly, a big boost to her comedy career when she least expected it. With a large cabaret, drag, and music scene, Palm Springs lacked comedy clubs. With its large LGBTQ population, Hartong saw an opportunity.
“There’s a really strong comedy culture amongst lesbians,” says Hartong. “In comedy it’s all about audiences showing up. And in Palm Springs they showed up.”
With shows first outdoors complying with Covid protocols and then once the vaccine was developed moved into venues, Hartong saw a surprising second chapter in her life as a comedian. Hartong’s life as a stand-up comic began in the mid-1990s when she was living in Amsterdam. An international city to begin with, most Dutch citizens speak English, allowing her to take to the microphone at open mic nights. But it was when she unknowingly entered a comedy contest, which was due to a lost in translation misunderstanding, and won that she thought she might give it an earnest go.
Like most any creative endeavor, starting in stand up requires a day job. For twenty years Hartong worked in the New York City public school system teaching theater, a necessary job that she also loved. She also followed the advice of more experienced comics, especially women as well as other lesbians in comedy, that in order to work she would need to learn to be a producer to create more work for herself. So Hartong founded Lez Out Loud, a comedy series for her and other lesbian comedians. With her newfound success and fan base in Palm Springs, it was time to go home. It’s often said that the fastest way to New York City is to leave New York. In such a crowded and competitive city, often performers don’t get much stage time there, so leaving actually allows one to do the work, rather than work at something else unrelated just to pay the bills. But the return entry can be bumpy.
“In a lot of ways, it was great to be back,” says Hartong. “It was a struggle getting back into comedy. Like a lot of New York comics, I work more outside of New York City than in. I had to kind of start from square one again. I definitely perform here, but I tour a lot. And I love being on tour.”
Hartong laughs when she thinks about how working as a teacher prepared her for life on the comedy circuit. After all a teacher needs to connect with her students and keep them engaged. And Hartong decided to do something pioneering. She developed the first curriculum in New York City’s public school system to offer a stand-up comedy class. For high school students to do something initially terrifying can lead to not only better performance skills, but also increased self-esteem and confidence. “I said to them, ‘If you can create a three-minute set then you can do just about anything’,” says Hartong. “There’s no fourth wall. Some people in the room are on your side, some people in the room want you to bomb. You just need to be in command of the room. If you can do that, you can do most anything on stage.”
Indeed, Hartong’s proved that to be true for herself. The trajectory of her comedy kept ascending. And at the quick advice of a television legend, Hartong left her job as a teacher to pursue comedy full time. While hosting a gala in Palm Springs, where Dick Cavett was being honored, the legendary television host struck up a conversation with Hartong, where she explained she was a teacher who did comedy on the side. While taking photographs together he leaned over to her, pointed to the stage, and said “That’s where you belong.” She took his advice immediately. And she has no regrets. She landed a job performing with Olivia Travel, a lesbian cruise and resort company. And then came her first comedy special Miss Personality, now streaming on Apple TV and other platforms. She’s bringing that live show to Provincetown for Women’s Week, kicking off a new tour as well as revisiting a place she hasn’t done solo shows in since 2001. Hartong is really at a tipping point.
“I sort of reached a peak in my career,” says Hartong. “I got booked on Olivia, which was a goal of mine for a long time. My friend asked me ‘What’s next?’ A comedy special just made sense. Everyone is doing them so now’s the time. I got an all queer-woman team, and that’s when I learned how few women in general are in post-production. It took longer than I thought, but we did it. It’s out there! I couldn’t be happier.”
Mina Hartong performs Miss Personality at Red Room, 258 Commercial St., Tuesday, October 13 through Friday, October 16 at 6 p.m. Tickets ($41.50/$51.50) are available at the box office and online at redroom.club.
