MIKE BIRBIGLIA (Actor/Writer) Over the past 11 years, Mike Birbiglia has grown from a struggling comic to a groundbreaking, original comic storyteller. The results? Two critically acclaimed albums, three Comedy Central specials, and this, his Off-Broadway debut. At 24, Mike was one of the youngest comedians ever to appear on The Late Show With David Letterman. From there, Mike took his act on the road: headlining colleges, then clubs, and now theaters nationwide. His first album on Comedy Central Records, Two Drink Mike, drew comparisons to Jerry Seinfeld from Esquire. AMG Music called it “the arrival of stand-up’s next big thing.” In 2003, Mike performed at HBO’s U.S. Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen, Colorado. While there, he was asked to be a part of The Moth Storytelling Series, famous for featuring writers as diverse as Sam Shepard, Andy Borowitz, and Malcolm Gladwell. This experience piqued his interest in bringing more honest storytelling to his standup. Over the next year, Mike started writing his “Secret Public Journal,” a blog chronicling his habit of “making awkward situations even more awkward.” Mike’s Journal quickly gained momentum, picking up 30,000 email subscribers and an invitation to perform it regularly on the nationally syndicated Bob & Tom Radio Show. In 2007, Mike released a live rendition of his favorite stories on a CD entitled My Secret Public Journal Live, which both Time Out New York and Time Out Chicago hailed the “Comedy Album of the Year.” He is recently a new contributor to PRI’s This American Life with Ira Glass.
For more Mike, check out his albums on Comedy Central Records and his DVD, What I Should Have Said Was Nothing.