Emmy Contender: ‘Baskets’ Star Martha Kelly on Stage Fright and Zach Galifianakis’ Advice

“At first I thought, ‘There’s no way I can do this,'” standup comic Martha Kelly tells TheWrap Magazine

zach galifianakis martha kelly baskets
FX

A version of this story first appeared in the print edition of TheWrap Magazine’s  The Race Begins Emmy Issue.

Zach Galifianakis‘ FX series “Baskets” is one of the weirdest, most uncomfortable new sitcoms on TV, the tale of a hapless wannabe clown at a rodeo in the rural town of Bakersfield, California.

Executive produced by Galifianakis, Louis C.K. and Jonathan Krisel (“Portlandia”), the show features a pair of ace supporting performances by Louie Anderson, who plays Galifiakanis’ mother in drag but without winking, and the deadpan standup comic Martha Kelly, who makes her acting debut as a Costco insurance adjuster who becomes the clown’s only friend.

“At first I thought, ‘There’s no way I can do this,’” Kelly told TheWrap. “But Zach said, ‘Just be yourself,’ and they created a character that isn’t really me, but has the same affect and demeanor that I have. So it’s not like I’m acting like someone totally different. And he kept saying, ‘It’s not a big deal, we’re just here to have fun.’”

Kelly said she still feels more comfortable doing stand-up comedy than acting. “With stand-up you can just be yourself on stage,” she said. “And ideally, you can’t see the crowd most of the time — it’s just lights in your face. But I still have had terrible stage fright. So when I started doing open-mic nights, I would get drunk every night before I went on. That helped — but now I’m sober and I’m acting, which I didn’t think would ever happen.”

See more of TheWrap Magazine’s Emmy Issue The Race Begins:

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