CMJ Q&A: Kristen Schaal

Comedian Kristen Schaal is a busy, busy woman; her book “The Sexy Book of Sexy Sex” was released in July, she made her first appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman over the summer, and she’s now in rehearsals for the world premiere of Coward at the Lincoln Center.

It shoudn’t be surprising, then, that Schaal won’t have much time to mingle and check out the other acts at CMJ this week.

“It’ll be fun to be there,” she said, “but there just isn’t enough time!”

The “Flight of the Conchords” scene-stealer will know what’s she in for going into her Saturday night performance at Union Hall with Reggie Watts and others, entitled “Heart of Darkness: A Night of Forgiveness and Salvation,” though; she’s performed at South By Southwest and the Bonnaroo Music Festival.

Is performing for an audience at a music festival easier or more difficult than performing at a comedy club? The audience that goes to see live music is very respectful. There’s no such thing as heckling at a concert. And it translates when I’m on stage at those, too. It seems like an ideal meld.

Do you feel like you have to do a “greatest hits” set at festivals because the crowds might not be as stand-up savvy? The spirit is about experimenting. The crowd tends to be really supportive of anything you want to try.

Do get a chance at these festivals to meet and mingle with the other acts? I’ve had a lot of opportunities to meet a lot of great bands, because I can play the “Flight of the Conchords” card. All the bands look up to that show.

And it must really grow your music collection. I really wait for my friends to tell me, “You have to hear this band.” I get my music from them, then look it up on iTunes.