Whitney Chitwood is a stand-up comedian from

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. Her debut album, 2019's ''The Bakery Case'', was produced by Grammy winner

Dan Schlissel Dan Schlissel is an American record producer from Minneapolis, Minnesota, and founder of the record labels Stand Up! Records, which specializes in comedy, and -ismist Recordings, which focused on punk and alternative rock from Nebraska and nearb ...

for

Stand Up! Records Stand Up! Records is an American independent comedy record label founded in Minneapolis, Minnesota, by Grammy-winning producer Dan Schlissel. It has been called "the country's most respected indie comedy label." Stand Up! has released more than 20 ...

. It reached No. 9 on the Billboard Comedy Albums chart, and No. 1 on the iTunes and Amazon comedy charts.

Early life

Chitwood grew up in a small town near

Peoria, Illinois Peoria ( ) is the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, United States, and the largest city on the Illinois River. As of the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census, the city had a population of 113,150. It is the principal city of the Peoria ...

. As a child, Chitwood was heavily involved in the stage-theater world; both her parents ran theaters, and she spent much of her childhood around the stage, as well as her grandfather's farm. She performed in her first show at six months old.

Career

She studied theater in college but left early to pursue an acting career in New York City, then decided to focus on stand-up comedy at age 21. She worked as a comic in New York and Los Angeles before settling in Chicago. Her comedy is sometimes surreal and often deals with political topics and LGBT issues like sexuality and gender identity, but also personal issues like infidelity and her relatives in rural Illinois. A regular performer at the Chicago

Laugh Factory Laugh Factory is a chain of comedy clubs in the United States. The chain is owned by Laugh Factory Inc., and the founder and current chief executive is Jamie Masada. Endurance record The Laugh Factory keeps track of an endurance record fo ...

, Chitwood has also appeared at the Altercation Comedy Festival, Riot LA, Hollywood Improv, and Milwaukee Riverwest Femfest. She is a frequent contributor to live "audio magazine" Paper Machete at Chicago's

Green Mill Cocktail Lounge The Green Mill Cocktail Lounge (or Green Mill Jazz Club) is an entertainment venue on Broadway in Uptown, Chicago. It is known for its jazz and poetry performances, along with its connections to Chicago mob history. History Originally named Pop ...

, as well as the WCPT radio show ''Out Chicago'', and has written for the magazine ''

Playbill ''Playbill'' is an American monthly magazine for theatergoers. Although there is a subscription issue available for home delivery, most copies of ''Playbill'' are printed for particular productions and distributed at the door as the show's pr ...

''. She has performed with

Eddie Pepitone Edward David Pepitone (born November 5, 1958) is an American character actor and stand-up comedian. Early life Pepitone was born to a Sicilian father and a Jewish mother in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, and was raised from the age of nine ...

Adam Conover Adam Conover (born March 2) is an American comedian, writer, voice actor, and television host. He created and hosted the half-hour truTV show ''Adam Ruins Everything'', based on the CollegeHumor series of the same name. He was also the host of t ...

, and

River Butcher River Buddy Butcher (born Rhea Harriett Butcher; August 12, 1982) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, producer, and podcast host. Butcher is best known for personal, observational comedy focused on his vegetarianism, feminism, love o ...

. Chitwood's album, ''The Bakery Case'', is named for the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

case

Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission ''Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission'', 584 U.S. ___ (2018), was a case in the Supreme Court of the United States that dealt with whether owners of public accommodations can refuse certain services based on the First Amendment ...

, which dealt with whether a business could refuse service to LGBT clientele due to religious belief. It was recorded live at the Green Mill. A reviewer for comedy website The Interrobang praised the album, saying that with "her chronic chainsmoker voice and a jawline that could take down an oak tree ... it’s clear that Whitney’s a force to reckon with in the comedy world." She appeared in a 2019 episode of the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

TV series ''

Chicago P.D. The Chicago Police Department (CPD) is the municipal law enforcement agency of the U.S. city of Chicago, Illinois, under the jurisdiction of the City Council. It is the second-largest municipal police department in the United States, behind th ...

'' She hosts the podcast ''Is This Us?'' with Chicago comic Carly Ballerini.

Discography

*''The Bakery Case'' (

, 2019)

Other work

Podcast appearances

''Is This Us?'' with Whitney Chitwood and Carly Ballerini (2020)

''Dope Ass Podcast'', "How To Break Into Comedy With Whitney Chitwood" (December 13, 2019)

''Talking During Movies'', Episode 113: Comedian and new friend Whitney Chitwood and I Talk Over ''Alien'' (April 2020)

''Chad the Bird'', Whitpocalypse! (April 11, 2020)

''Busted Mouth'', Episode 67: Whitney Chitwood (November 12, 2019)

''Lossano and Friends'', Episode 126: Whitney Chitwood and Stephanie Weber (September 10, 2019)

''Performance Revue'', Whitney Chitwood (July 22, 2019)

'' Probably Science'', Episode 309: Whitney Chitwood and Carly Ballerini (September 28, 2018)

''Wingcast: Wingman Podcast'', Episode 11: Wingmen to a Gay Woman with Jayson Cross & Whitney Chitwood (September 27, 2017)

References

External links

Official Whitney Chitwood website
*
Whitney Chitwood at Stand Up! Records website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chitwood, Whitney Living people Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century American comedians American stand-up comedians American women comedians American lesbian writers Lesbian comedians LGBT people from Illinois Entertainers from Chicago Comedians from Illinois Stand Up! Records artists American women podcasters American podcasters 21st-century American women writers American LGBT comedians