Thousands of miles from his hometown of Bukhara, Uzbekistan, the New York City-based comedian and writer Natan Badalov feels at home today in America.
But for a long time, he felt like an outsider. In the early '90s--at the time of a large exodus of Bukharians from Central Asia after the collapse of the Soviet Union--Badalov and his family emigrated from Uzbekistan to Queens, N.Y.
There, Badalov, a member of the
Mizrahi
Jewish community--who typically follow Sephardic practices rather than Ashkenazic--attended a Jewish day school, where most of his peers had never encountered a Jew who wasn't Ashkenazi.
Badalov's origin story and his Bukharian Jewish identity play prominently in his comedy. He created
Park West
, an animated web series about his time in
yeshiva
. The comedian also co-starred and wrote
Heartbreakers
, a web series detailing how he and his roommate were dumped by their girlfriends at the same time.
Now Badalov, 32, is touring the country with his solo standup comedy show "Connect The Dots: A Solo Show About Jewish Identity," which comes to The Lincoln Lodge in Chicago Sunday, Aug. 11.
In his show, he explores show two stories of heartbreak--his break-up with an Ashkenazi rabbi and his struggle to feel at home as a Bukharian Jew in America--through humor.
Jewish Chicago
spoke with Badalov by phone about his comedic style, his relationship with Judaism, and the impact of the current political climate on his comedy.
Jewish Chicago:
Welcome back to Chicago! How do you like it here?
Badalov: It's a good comedy city. One of my heroes, Hannibal Buress, is from there. New York is about wanting to be famous; Chicago gives you time to be creative and find your voice.
Your comedy jabs at politics, religion, and authority in general. What do you respect?
Intellect. A point of view. Being a good person, and not trying to swindle others. It's a low bar to be a good person.
What do you think about the "cancel culture" debate in today's comedy?
Lazy comics start with, "They're going to cancel me for saying this…" But really, you can still say those things, and people who agree will come to your show. You can still have an audience.
Why are you so open about your Jewish identity?
It bothers me when people run away from being Jewish--you can't. I responded to a guy online who said that he wants to just tell people he's Italian, not Jewish. I said, "You can't take off your Judaism like a T-shirt."
My mother noticed that on my website, I said I was Uzbek. She corrected me, [and said] that I'm Jewish. That's my nationality. [Historically,] we've been moving around all the time. Anywhere you go, you might have to leave. It's like Shaq--he can keep changing teams, but he's still him.
What's your reaction to the campus protests against Israel?
Instead of telling me about Israel, people should ask me. I have family in Israel on my mom's side. In the mass emigration from the Soviet Union, some came here [and] some went to Israel. I was going to go in October, but my flight was canceled.
None of the protests actually achieve anything. They say they are 'not attacking Jews, but Zionists.' Well, 80 to 90 percent of Jews are Zionists. The youth of the world see things in an oppressed/oppressor binary. But both the Palestinians and Israelis look like me.
What can people expect when they come to your show?
Of course, I'm going to talk about the war and the rise in antisemitism. But, also, about my mom pressuring me to get married.
Follow Natan Badalov on socials at @natanbadalov.
Natan Badalov will perform his solo show "Connect The Dots" at The Lincoln Lodge in Chicago Aug. 11th at 7 p.m. for one night only. Get tickets--$10 each--at
bit.ly/natanbadalov
.
