Andy Iwancio and Natasha Muse both have been doing standup comedy for over a decade, live on the West Coast (Seattle and San Francisco, respectively), and have a penchant for puns.
Oh, and they’re both transgender.
“I think we get along not just because we’re trans women, but because we both love silly wordplay. We’re just as dorky about it, and so I think that’s largely what we’ve bonded over. But then also the trans thing,” Iwancio says.
She and Muse headline “Transformative Laughter” on June 24 at San Francisco’s Punch Line. They’ll be joined by host Frida Sierra and guest Emery Jean in an entirely trans lineup.
“For the longest time, I was the only trans comedian on the bill. It just felt like there weren’t really that many of us, especially here in the city. Now, I feel like there’s a critical mass of trans people where we’re able to put together a solid show,” says Muse.
Muse and Iwancio have appeared at SF Sketchfest and Bridgetown Comedy Festival (on hiatus since 2017) in Portland, Oregon and events like “Laughs in Trans Nation,” part of the Safe Words Queer Comedy Showcase.
In their acts, observations, interests and topics such as disability (Iwancio) and parenthood (Muse) are fair game, as are mentions of transness.
“Sometimes, when I’d do shorter sets or open mic nights, I just didn’t really have the time to talk about being trans,” Muse says. “But it is a facet of my personality, and I do feel like it influenced how I grew up, the types of interactions I’ve had, and my relationships with my parents and things like that.”
“It’s not that I always want to talk about it, but I feel like I do need to acknowledge it, because it’s a part of who I am, and so it colors how my life is,” she adds.
Iwancio, too, broaches the subject, with examples in her album “Better Living Through Femmistry” (Kill Rock Stars, 2024) and her EP “Hard Trans” (2023) and its three tracks, “Trans,” “Rights” and “Now.”
Over the years, she’s perfected a certain approach when bringing the subject up to audiences: “I use a lot of curse words as a spoonful of sugar for people to not notice they’re learning about the trans experience,” she says.
Performing at a queer-themed show like “Transformative Laughter” gives both the opportunity to dive right into their trans material.
“With a queer audience, I don’t need to introduce some of the language, so it is nice to have that familiarity and not have to set it up like I normally do in other rooms. But even then, it’s become easier. It needs less setup as time has gone on. You can use [fewer] words to describe it, for better or worse,” says Iwancio.
“I know that the audience is going to get me in a way that a standard audience might not, so it gives me a little bit more flexibility about what I want to do and where I can go with things,” Muse echoes.
A comedy show during Pride Month is also a way to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community and cultivate joy during challenging times.
“It’s [about] being able to make some of it funny in the worst of times. I think we all understand the most sad parts of it, but the idea is to try to highlight the bright spots,” says Iwancio, adding, “I think it could be worse if we were isolated and not knowing each other exists.”
“It’s so easy to focus on everything bad happening and feel compelled to always work on how to make the world a better place and how to make things less horrible. All of that is obviously important, but it’s also important to take a break from that and just enjoy each other’s company. I feel like getting together for a show is a great way to do that,” says Muse.
Plus, there’s that idiom about laughter being the best medicine. Iwancio is confident that this story will incentivize readers to head to Punch Line on Tuesday night.
“It sounds like it’s going to be three sentences at most, and one of the sentences talks about how attractive I am,” she says.
She supports referencing impressive, unique abilities beyond her comedy chops—whatever it takes for people to check out “Transformative Laughter.”
“I don’t really forge swords and knives, but it would be fun if people thought I did something interesting, that I had something to set me apart. I’m deadly with a katana — something like that. Spice it up. Say I was juggling the whole time.”
“Transformative Laughter” is at 7:30 p.m. June 24 at the Punch Line, 444 Battery St., San Francisco. Tickets are $26-$35 plus service charges; visit punchlinecomedyclub.com.
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