Interview With Dawn Diamond
Posted by Jana Edele | Filed under News
Dawn Diamond is the stand-up comic in the Velvet Kittens, and she also happens to be one hell of a singer. Learn more about this brassy babe here.
How did you transition from being Young Miss Texas to a stand-up comic?
I have always been a “ham” if you will, and I always loved competing. I have been a singer/actor most of my life. I started doing plus size modeling for an agency here in Dallas, they pitched my portfolio to Wilhelmina Modeling Agency in NYC and they wanted to sign me as a print model/singer/actor. I moved to NYC (loved it!!!) and met my BFF up there Cerelia. She was a comic and I went to an open-mic with her. She dared me to go up, so I did, and the rest is history! I love it! I love to make people smile and laugh and have a great time!
How long have you been doing comedy? Do you remember your first gig?
I have been doing comedy now for 8 yrs. My very 1st gig was at the famous “Carolines on Broadway” (no pressure, right?) and I was scared to death. I had my whole set written down on my hand! That was the longest five minutes of my life! The crowd loved it and then the “bug” had offically bit me. It was a high like I have never experienced.
How did you meet Jana Edele?
I met Jana through Randy Butler who is the owner of Hyena’s Comedy Night Clubs. He was wanting to put on a burlsque show called the Red Light Burlesque Revue and he called me up and said “Dawn, I want you to meet the director of the show, I think she’ll love you… I need a front person who is a big girl, great singer, pretty and funny, I think you fit the bill”… Coming from Randy, that’s a huge compliment!
What did you like most about the shows at The Red Light?
The thing that I loved most about the Red Light was that we had a venue set up for just us and that it introduced me to where I think that I fit in the best, I get to do the two things I love the most about performing… stand-up and singing!
You also are a very talented singer. Tell me how you use your comedic background into the songs you sing. In our show, I try to pick songs that fit our show and that fits the “Mae West”/”Gypsy Rose” style. I would like to do some serious songs in the future too.
Does the fact that you perform in a vaudevillian-style burlesque show affect the way that you write jokes? I don’t think that I really write vaudevillian style jokes because most of those are one-liners… What inspires me to write is life itself and things that I see and think. I try to do jokes that are non-male bashing, but life experience. Now about the formula? I think it’s just trial and error! But I love it.
What is your most memorable moment performing with the Velvet Kittens. ALL OF THEM!!! That may sound cheesy but, I think that we are the most talented group of women that I have ever had the honor to work with and I am proud to be a Kitten! I think that we get better and over come obstacles all the time and that makes us the best at what we do!
You spent some time in NY and LA, are there some stories that you would like to share from those experiences? How did you get back to Texas?
My time in NY and LA made me a better performer I think, and I was able to meet and hang out with some awesome people. In NY I learned how to write comedy, and in LA I learned how to act out the comedy. I came home to Texas to finish my degree and go back because I was tired of waiting tables between gigs. As I was at home doing my internship I met the man of my dreams, my husband Drew, and decided that I wanted to be “Normal” (whatever that is!) and I think it’s been God’s way of getting me ready for what the Kittens have in store. I think that there is no limit to our future!
What stand-up performers do you admire most?
There are so many, and for so many different reasons! Some are clean, some are dirtier than dirty! But they are Debi Gutierezz, Brett Butler, Ron White, Jeff Dunham, Bill Cosby, Bill Hicks, Lenny Bruce, Minnie Pearl, Paul Mooney, Monique, Lisa Lampanelli… I could go on and on, but these are a few. They each have taught me something, either in person from working with them, or from studying their work.