CHICAGO — John Mulaney, a bit heavier in the face since last we saw him, a bit more weathered since his personal life imploded publicly, now looking eager to shed his Catholic choirboy air at 39, stepped out of the wings at the United Center on Thursday night with visibly watery eyes. He appeared overwhelmed and humbled. Here was the first of three sold-out arena shows, in his hometown, and on a scale seldom reserved for a funny writer with a microphone and a glass of water on a stool. Then he plowed forward, characteristically undercutting the moment: Being here, in the great house of Michael Jordan, reminded him if you’re white and grow up in Lincoln Park with no major concerns, you can do great things.
He wore a tuxedo and boomed in his trademark carnival barker cadence, but considering the size of the audience and squirminess that followed, it felt slyly subversive, even thrillingly electric. Albeit, the way you feel when anyone is telling you a story so intimate you’re not sure you should be hearing this.
Mulaney, in his previous life, liked to remind audiences that he used to have addictions and people were surprised to hear this, since he didn’t look like “someone who used to do anything.”
