Health issues are no laughing matter — unless you’re at “Queer Bodies, Queer Selves,” a comedy show infused with health education.
The show, crafted by and starring comic Kelli Dunham, along with R. Eric Thomas and Dan Horrigan, will be held at 8 p.m. Jan. 21 at William Way LGBT Community Center, 1315 Spruce St.
The stand-up routines will center on LGBT health, with the all-queer cast using comedy to explore common health issues the community faces in an effort to get LGBTs motivated to make their health a priority.
Dunham, a nurse, entered the world of stand-up comedy about eight years ago but has long been eager to make audiences laugh.
“When I was a kid, I would tell jokes to the cows walking home from school,” the Wisconsin native said. “I always wanted to be a comic, but you get to be a good stand-up comic by first doing bad comedy. That’s how you learn, but I didn’t have the self-confidence for that rejection. But when I turned 30, I realized that this isn’t just going to happen, I have to start actually doing it.”
At the time, she was working as a nurse in North Philadelphia and said she realized that the comedy stage would be an ideal outlet to promote the importance of proper healthcare.
Her sexual-health musings have been popular at college campuses, bars and other venues, and Dunham said the routine has a wide applicability.
“The idea is really to start a conversation about health,” she said. “As a butch-identified person who has traditionally dated femmes, a lot of times we let our partners be the ones who push us to take care of our health, and that’s not fair to our partners. We need to start talking about what it takes to be personally empowered. And that’s not easy — there are a lot of barriers, especially for gender-noncomforming people, but we have to start those conversations.”
While the topic is serious, it will be framed in a comedic light, with bits like “Of Piercings and Pap Smears” — a popular routine about the dichotomy of lesbians who are afraid to get a pelvic exam despite having piercings, a piece that Dunham said is played regularly on Sirius Satellite Radio.
The show will also offer practical advice, such as through a comedic animated short film about preparing for a medical emergency, getting audience members thinking about what hospital they’d feel most comfortable at and which of their friends or family members they would ask to transport them in case of an emergency.
Additionally, Action AIDS will be at the event to provide HIV testing, and a number of LGBT health organizations will be on hand with resources so guests can also undergo health screenings such as blood-pressure and blood-sugar checks.
Admission is on a sliding scale from $10-$20, but Dunham said no guest will be turned away because of an inability to pay.
“This is a way for people to have a really fun time and laugh but also get some good information,” she said. “If you have a friend that you’ve been trying to have this conversation with, this is a great way to make that happen.”
For more information, visit www.kellidunham.com.