In the Netflix series “Baby Reindeer”, Richard Gadd’s character, Donny Dunn, has a viral breakdown moment during one of his stand-up sets.
In the viral video scene, Dunn opens up about how he was sexually assaulted by a writer who groomed him and promised to help his career. Although this moment is not real, it is based on a tangent about the struggles that Gadd faced in real life.
Gadd revealed the experience during one of his sets in June 2011, titled 'Monkey See Monkey Do.' In the one-man show that debuted at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August 2016, Gadd presented a 'lurid, unsparing portrait of a consciousness in meltdown'.
The show also toured to key venues across the UK and Europe, and had a five-week run at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. It was also broadcast on Comedy Central.
In the show characterizes that instance as “an unparalleled letdown,” and suggests that comedians inadvertently pave the way for their own downfall. “Performing comedy is akin to being caught between a rock and a hard place,” he said
“You’re trapped in the crossfire of self-assuredness and susceptibility,” he adds and says that comedians frequently “pursue flawlessness,” a futile endeavor given its subjective nature. “Perfection is unattainable, hence as a comedian, contentment remains elusive.”
Speaking to The Guardian, he recalled doing the technical rehearsal before the first performance. “I remember cracking up, because it was all going so badly, and the producer said, ‘What do you want from this, man?’ And I turned to him with tears in my eyes, and said, ‘I just want to make it out alive’,” he explained.
