VerVoort’s onstage presence (which Valerie has referred to in the past as a “mom vibe”, but now describes as “a consummate professional”) has continued to evolve. “I’ve kind of become this like, Girl Friday Old Reliable,” VerVoort jokes, noting a (well-earned) reputation for consistently delivering. “If my job is to make people laugh, and I consistently deliver on that promise…that’s great!”
In the comedy business, consistency is hard-fought, and worth the price, especially during a time when the rest of the world was anything but. Interrupting the ability to perform is its own painful blow, but the pandemic also had VerVoort discovering how much comedy was a balancing element holistically in her life. When shutdowns became pervasive, she “realized how much psychologically you needed all these things, to keep yourself busy, to distract yourself.”
Without those diversions, VerVoort found herself digging deep to deal with some of those previously back-burnered challenges (like the seemingly omni-present Imposter’s Syndrome so many of us face), and feels all the better for it. Triumphs like opening for her personal idol Maria Bamford certainly didn’t hurt. “There’s photos on my phone where I’m smiling so big, I could unhinge my jaw and eat a turkey,” she reflects, and when Bamford complimented her skill with writing and words “it meant so much that it was like it became a suit of armor” she could wear into the world.
Of course, when we speak with someone so gifted at wordplay (and so consistent!), the question of an album always comes up. VerVoort says she has been contemplating it, but doesn’t yet have the traditional “full hour” of material ready just yet. “I could do a little EP,” she says, joking that “it could be like me, very petite!”
We humbly beg to differ, as one of VerVoort’s signature talents is packing jokes with enough layers of details that multiple re-listens are essentially guaranteed.