Java.Dec.2017-pages

LESLIE BARTON
As a child, Leslie Barton would perform renditions of theme songs from her
parents’ favorite shows. She would add her twists and flair to them as a
way to diffuse tension. Her parents fought a lot, and making them laugh
was a way to distract from their fights. In many ways, Leslie has never
stopped being that kid. She uses comedy as a tool to diffuse tensions and distract
people from the things that haunt them in their ordinary lives. She does renditions.
She sings the jokes till the pain becomes secondary.
Like many comics, Barton didn’t immediately galvanize toward the trade. She
started doing comedy around eight years ago. Before comedy, she was a multidimensional
artist and creative force in Phoenix. She was part of the fledging band
Breakfast of Champions, and she managed Modified Arts for about five years.
There’s a saying in poetry that every great poet is always trying to rewrite their
first great poem, and in many ways, though Barton ventured out and did a lot of
artistic work, she is beholden to her first love, her most cherished memory: making
people laugh.
There’s something particular about being an only child. You have to create a lot of
entertainment for yourself, and sometimes that translates to a kid who’s isolated
and can’t relate to their peers. However, Barton moved a lot when she was young
and had to rely on her keen sense of humor in order to make friends. Also, it helped
to have funny parents. “My parents were hilarious,” Barton said. “My mom was
super dry and biting. My dad was just comical. He could write a joke. He kind of
got me interested in doing artwork. We would, in some weird way, write jokes.
They would also let me stay up super late and watch Saturday Night Live and such,
and I would go to school and tell the jokes.”
Barton’s family eventually stopped moving as much when she was in about eighth
grade, when they settled in Phoenix. Leslie attended Thunderbird High School,
where she got into music, which would remain a fixture in her life for several
years. After graduating, Barton plunged headfirst into the Phoenix art scene and
was able to work at both Modified Arts and Space 55 doing various art and music
enterprises in the early 2000s. “What was great about Space 55 is that they treat
you like equals. They don’t look down on you for trying new things. They were all
highly educated people,” said Barton. It wasn’t until 2010 that Barton began to
consider doing comedy. Her friend, Phoenix comic Steve Maxwell, pushed her to
write jokes and do comedy. He was already established and saw something in her.
“I started doing jokes and got up on stage, and I got better at it,” Barton said. “Like
everything else, even if you suck, if you keep at it you will get better.”
Comics perform for various reasons, and Barton just wants to be successful
enough to tour and make rent. Compared to music, comedy seems like something
that forces her into herself in ways that music never did. Barton carries a book
around with her and writes down every funny thing she thinks of during the day,
whether it’s good or bad. She also talks to herself a lot in the apartment. “I live
alone, so there’s nobody around to see what a nutcase I am when I’m screaming
in my rooms at the top of my voice,” said Barton. “Or if I just literally walk from
room to room telling the same joke over again trying to get it where it sounds right
to me. A lot of people think that comics improvise their sets, but don’t realize that
a lot of times that ten-minute set was years in the making.” When Barton first
started doing comedy, she would also – based on the advice of Steve Maxwell –
take a newspaper and write current-event jokes.
One thing that Barton feels really helped her was having a writing group with
people who she felt were better than her. “It made me more confident. It made
me more self-assured,” Barton said. In regard to comedy, Barton feels like it’s
something that’s keeping her sane. “I’m just doing comedy until I fall in love with
someone. Then I’ll be in love and do comedy.”
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