Today we’d like to introduce you to Vally D.
Vally, we’d love to hear your story and how you got to where you are today both personally and as an artist.
I grew up in a family of Russian immigrants in Boulder, CO, so pretty different from most kids around me. My folks got divorced when I was 4 years old, then remarried other Russian people. My chance to assimilate better with an American step-parent was gone.
Just kidding, I’m fine. But I do find American people pretty exotic, especially if their parents are still married.
My parents exposed me to traveling early. From domestic road trips, to visiting Russia, and even a cruise to Mexico, I learned to love it. I ended up studying abroad in China and Germany. Nowadays, doing comedy in different cities feels like a very natural extension of my interest in travel.
Except for one set I did at the talent show in middle school, I didn’t fully discover standup until later, maybe college. It wasn’t until I met and spoke to a comedian in Colorado (Ursula Mains) that performing myself, actually writing jokes and saying them into a microphone in front of an audience, seemed feasible.
Two years later, and I should clarify that’s two years of writing and performing almost every day, I feel like I’m just starting standup, with a world to learn.
We’d love to hear more about your art. What do you do you do and why and what do you hope others will take away from your work?
I do a few different kinds of comedy. So far, that has mostly been standup, but I’ve been branching out recently into musical comedy, improv, and sketch. I’d recommend anyone who does comedy explore a few different kinds before settling.
Part of the reason I love comedy is that I love performing and making people laugh. I do that anyway, why not try to get paid for my personality somehow? I feel drawn to it, too. Especially if I take a break for a few days, there’s a sense of longing to write a joke, go test it out, analyze it. And it’s like writing jokes gives my life meaning, too, as cliché as that sounds.
I mostly take inspiration from daily life, but I try to keep tabs on the news, different terms, cultural phenomena that might be interesting to dissect on stage. Comedy has a tremendous power to influence people. When we’re laughing, when we’re hearing someone open up and share their take on something… we open up, too. Watching comedy informs our perspective in a million ways. If someone can leave a performance of mine having had a good time, that’s great. If they’re also more thoughtful about the world around them… that’s awesome. That’s the goal.
How can artists connect with other artists?
I would imagine every art form has a slightly different social scene. Logistically, a great way to connect with other comedians is to attend open mics and shows, and to perform as much as possible. In practice, this can still feel lonely, because you don’t immediately get along with everyone. I recommend being genuine, honest, polite, and kind. You’ll find your niche, but you have to crawl before you walk.
Do you have any events or exhibitions coming up? Where would one go to see more of your work? How can people support you and your artwork?
I perform all over Boston and I like to travel for comedy as much as possible. I post performance information on my website. I also post funny content (or I try to) on social media.
Website: vallyd.com
Instagram: @vallydthecomic
Twitter: @vallydthecomic
Facebook: fb.com/vallydthecomic
Contact Info:
- Website: Vallyd.com/contact
- Instagram: Instagram.com/vallydthecomic
- Facebook: Fb.com/vallydthecomic
- Twitter: Twitter.com/vallydthecomic
Image Credit:
Michael Stewart, Dize Hacioglu, Casey McNeal
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