Grief comedy
Gallows humor and levity in loss. Is there a right way to grieve? Ben Wasserman doesn’t know, but he has doggedly and joyfully shared his version of grief-processing throughout the US over the last few years.
Using a sailor’s mouth and a philosopher’s heart to illustrate his story of navigating grief, Ben often performing in the slumber rooms of funeral homes. His one-man show centers his story of the loss of three family members and four friends over a three-year period, and what it was like to be unprepared for what happens when someone you love dies.
episode
No right way to grieve
Grief is an organic process, and while the song is familiar, no two dance steps are the same. Creative outlets, writing, painting, pounding your fists on the floor may offer some support. Building altars or creating rituals can allow us to create a physical expression of our relationship to someone we’ve lost. Simply sharing that we’re grieving or letting our support systems know that it’s ok to ask about our grief can help us move forward in the face of loss.
Say the names of the ones you’ve loved and lost, share the stories of their lives and your connections to them. When we remember the ones who have died we pull them into the present moment. Some piece of them exists in our minds, our hearts and their stories rest on our tongues. Sharing the simple, the extraordinary, the complicated parts of who they were to us allows them to live through us.
Ben generously invites the audience to share their stories of grief, holding their stories gently, in heartwarming vulnerable moments that soften his gritty and bombastic comedic style.
As we got to know Ben, we learned that even through all of this loss, he and his mother Ricki, had never actually sat together to discuss what she might want for the end of her life.
They courageously invited us to document what planning for death looks like in the life of a comedian who’s always talking about death.
Resources
Ben wasserman
To see more of Ben’s show, Live After Death, and his current work, visit his website.
grief support
If you need support regarding a loss, please book and appointment with our resident death doula and coach Heather Hogan.
support for kids
For children struggling with loss, we recommend the books The Fall of Freddie the Leaf and Zara's Big Messy Goodbye as a conversation starters.