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Rita Rudner developed her comedic career
from the adversity of her childhood,

LI

SUZANNE CHESSLER

SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

ancer - turned - com-
edienne Rita Rudner
believes adversity is an
important element of
humor.
"Wit comes from cop-
ing with difficult situ-
ations," said Ms. Rud-
ner, who is appearing in two
shows at the George Burns
Theatre on Dec. 4. "There's
nothing funny about a good-
looking person who's doing
well.
"You have to be funny to
get through adversity. I
think that's why Jewish
people are funny, but I don't
think we're alone in our
adversity. I think that's why
there's a lot of black come-
dians now; they've ex-
perienced a lot of adversity.
"I think that most comics
have something in their
backgrounds that made
them funny because things
weren't going right, and
they had to develop a sense
of humor."
For Ms. Rudner, 36, whose
act presents funny twists to
everyday frustrations, the
adversity came early. As a
young teen-ager in Florida,
she had to deal with her
mother's illness and death.
"Dad and I both have very
sharp senses of humor, and
I think we're witty people
because we had to be," she
said. "If you're going to stay
active and vital in the
world, you have to figure out
a way to cope."
Her sense of humor did
not surface on stage until
way beyond that sad time.
Trained as a dancer, she
. worked with professional
ballet companies and in
summer stock while still in
Florida. She moved to New
York after an early high
school graduation, seeking a
career in musical theater.
It took only three months

C■ 1

for her to get a part in a
touring company of Zorba
and she went on to win roles
in Annie, Promises, Pro-
mises and other hit shows.
Ten years of dancing and
singing, however, made her
want to branch out into a
new area of entertainment,
and she decided to try stand-
up comedy, which led to ad-

ditional successes on stage,
TV, and romance as well.
Methodically she set up a
study plan that included
reviewing tapes of come-
dians she admired and then
writing and trying out her
own jokes at comedy clubs.
Soft-spoken in her delivery,
she exaggerates circum-
stances she believes are

common to members of the
audience.
ti
"When I perform for any CNJ
audience, I really want it to CC
be a personal experience," CO
said Ms. Rudner, who made w
up her mind to overcome her
shyness to do comedy. She
didn't see lack of self-
confidence as an obstacle

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