Photo via brookevanpoppelen.com

Most stand-up comedians that have gained any sort of notoriety do so because they are not one-trick ponies. Some have popular podcasts and others are fantastic writers or actors in their own sitcoms. Then there are others like Brooke Van Poppelen, who have branched out into storytelling. Comics like Tig Notaro and Mike Birbiglia have made their way onto public radio with their funny yet poignant stories and Van Poppelen is one comic that we expect to follow suit.

Van Poppelen has appeared on a slue of “Comics to Watch” lists and understandably so. Her stand-up has included hilarious things like dynamic impersonations of her parents, honestly re-written laxative commercials and silly afterlife realizations. But the Detroit-born and Brooklyn-based comic and co-host of Hack My Life has also found that storytelling provides a home for her longer and more nuanced stories. Perhaps that’s why she was called upon to host tonight’s Story League Championships at the Black Cat. We talked to Van Poppelen about blurring the lines between stand-up comedy and storytelling and why she loves to perform in D.C.

DCist: You’re coming down to D.C. specifically to host the Story League Championships. Within the realm of stand-up comedy do you veer towards longer jokes that are more like storytelling in nature?

Brooke Van Poppelen: Yeah. I would easily say that. Storytelling has been kind of a great addition to the entertainment and comedy world in the sense that I think it’s validated a lot of us comedians that over the span of our career have felt like there’s no place for us on late night TV. It feels like everything’s a very short setup/punchline format and I think in general what we consider comedy has expanded so much in the past five or six years. But I think storytelling has added an element of “Storytellers are rock stars, too!” It’s definitely blurred the lines. I love to tell a story and in a set, if I’m doing a headlining gig, I will absolutely tell a bunch of stories. If I’ve only got seven minutes to showcase, I’ll keep it short and sweet. I’m not ballsy enough to attempt just one story for TV yet. I would love to. If you push and you show that it’s a story that has punch and it’s funny and comes full circle, then they’ll trust you a little more. But it’s funny, bookers still shy away from that in the straight comedy realm.

DCist: So, what have you been finding that exists within your scene in New York that has popped up in terms of allowing funny people to tell stories?

BVP: The Moth is so prevalent here. It’s so popular that it’s impossible to get into. The Moth is awesome. I can’t say enough good stuff about it. I love a lot of the storytellers. I would say in one sense it’s such a big draw that it almost has to become your new full time job and you decide, “I’m going to be a storyteller.” You still have to commit to a full night of putting your name in a hat and maybe not getting called. I think that can sometimes be very hard for a comedian when you’re like, “Well, I know for sure that I can do a stand-up set somewhere else.” So I feel like for comedians you have to draw a line in the sand a little bit and be like, “Well, I’ve worked so hard for stand-up, but storytelling is so popular!” They’re not messing around. The people who have committed — it’s what they do and it’s great. So luckily what’s happened is that there’s this entire crop of other independent themed storytelling shows that have popped up which I find are — sorry to sound selfish — it’s just easier. Because someone will just book me instead of me having to rededicate my time and schedule to attempt to get onstage at the Moth. And I only say that as a good thing just in terms of how popular it is. You can barely get in to watch it. You have to line up to even get a seat as an audience member and you have to show up hours early to even put your name in the hat as a storyteller.

DCist: So had you heard of Story League in D.C. prior to being booked to host it?

BVP: Yeah. I had heard the name come up in the past. I certainly have a handful of friends who are very well versed in the storytelling scene and are known among us. So I always hear them toss around the names shows that they’re going to do and that they’re going to be a part of. So this was not my first time hearing about it — which was really nice. I hope that Scott [Shrake] thought of me as a host because I do blur the lines. It’s nice to be able to flex all those muscles at one show.

DCist: Plus, it seems like Story League has made a shift toward focusing specifically on funny stories.

BVP: Certainly anybody who can tell a great story and also have the crowd rolling — it’s a gorgeous thing. I think as a comedian, the greatest gift in the world is entertaining for an audience that’s there to see storytelling. They’re a delightful, patient, very smart type of crowd. What’s so great is that there’s not this overwhelming expectation from a stand-up comedy crowd. We almost start at a deficit in a sense that they’re like, “Make me laugh, funny person!” It’s almost like you can breathe into it a little more, take a minute, say something that’s funny and the crowd just loves it. Maybe the crowd’s not expecting it and it comes really organically and those are some of my favorite laughs that I get. I would imagine that they enjoy listening to This American Life and they’ve got that aptitude to go on a ride if you want to be really funny, but then bittersweet, but then really funny again. We can talk about something with gravity but then there’s room for gallows humor in that. I just like that. For me, as a comedian, I’ve been trying to get back to and re-carve out a space for myself where I feel like I’m able to do everything that I like which serves all the emotions I like talking about and feeling. I’m not just a clown. I write sad, funny stories and I’m not afraid to go on emotional roller coaster rides with a crowd. That can be very hard in a stand-up setting. You don’t get booked to tell a sad story. I just love that storytelling crowds are ready to go on a ride with you.

DCist: It seems like a large chunk of stand-up comedian also have other lives as podcast producers, writers for television, storytellers and actors. Was your goal to get into stand-up comedy specifically, or was your goal to find any way to make a living being funny?

BVP: Storytelling came along at a really great time. It’s been interesting to realize this about myself — you build such an identity around stand-up and I’ve realized that I love doing it but I kind of like doing it my way. There are less of big league opportunities but I just don’t approach stand-up the way other people do. I love it but it’s ultimately been an unbelievable tool for me to branch out into other performance mediums. I’m a writer, I’m an actress, I’m a host, I’m storytelling and I’ve started booking singing for the past year because I miss it. I started songwriting. I’m a singer-songwriter and I’ve been writing really funny, good, amazing songs. I don’t think that I’d have the guts to do any of this if it weren’t for stand-up. So, I want to be funny, but this was a good moment for me to realize that sometimes I don’t know how to be funny as just a stand-up. Sometimes my thoughts don’t fit sometimes on a stand-up stage. I’m done feeling bad about that.

DCist: Are you ready to come back to D.C.?

BVP: I love doing stand-up in D.C. I have nothing but the best memories. Every time I come down and feel like I’m not being appreciated in Brooklyn, I’ve come down and done a show in D.C. that has set me straight. “I am good!” I used to do the Family Hemerlein shows if you remember those. I felt like I couldn’t be more at home with music and storytelling. I got to do Burst at Artisphere and it was insane. It was insane! I’ve just had some of my favorite performance moments in D.C. Even taking a Bolt Bus down and doing a bar show. I’ve done Bentzen Ball. D.C. has been great.