Just for Laughs: Fortune Feimster delivered a killer set at Katacombes

Maybe it’s her Southern upbringing, but Fortune Feimster has a contagious sweetness about her, even as she delivers serious material. Initially known for her role as Nurse Collette on The Mindy Project, Feimster is now being widely recognized for her stand-up, especially following the release of her superb recent episode of The Standups on Netflix.

Her demeanor and fun persona sugarcoated some of the material she touched on during her headlining set Just for Laughs, which served as a semi-chronological story about her youth and her eventual coming out as a young adult.

Feimster often pokes fun of herself, especially her appearance, but never in a pity-me, self-deprecating way. She discusses how growing up overweight made her the butt of jokes, and how her curly blonde hair and body shape often draw comparisons to “Ham” from The Sandlot, a mix-up she’s happy to play along with if it comes up in public (there’s that niceness again).

The most resonant material in the set focused on how she eventually realized she was a lesbian, which she admits took much longer for her to come around to than it should have. There were surely some signs along the way, including her love of Hooter’s, and Feimster really brought to life her early confusion surrounding her own sexuality in a touching and often hilarious way.

With some great moments of physical comedy, Feimster took control of the crowd and the stage like a comedian in the prime of their career. It was a focused and well-honed set that still managed to feel confessional and improvisational, which is no mean feat. This was definitely one of the best sets we caught at this year’s festival — expect Feimster to be headlining a much larger venue for her next Just for Laughs appearance.

Fortune Feimster brings a live taping of her Sincerely Fortune podcast to the Doubletree Hilton in Montreal on July 26 at 4:00 pm. Tickets and more info are available here.