Comedian Mike Birbiglia to headline 3 shows at Iowa City Englert Theatre

One of the greatest complements a stand-up can receive is being labeled unique. There’s no comic quite like Mike Birbiglia. The quirky humorist delivers terrific stories and is unpredictable. Birbiglia is amusing onstage, via film and as an author.

Birbiglia, 46, who will perform Thursday, Jan. 9, through Saturday, Jan. 11, at the Englert Theatre in Iowa City was a finalist for the 2011 Thurber Prize for American Humor courtesy of his 2010 book, “Sleepwalk with Me and Other Painfully True Stories.”

Birbiglia’s feature-length directorial debut “Sleepwalk with Me,” which hit screens in 2012, was based on his one-man show of the same name. Birbiglia won awards at the Sundance and Nantucket film festivals.

No one has profited from somnambulism, or sleepwalking, quite like Birbiglia. But his sleeping disorder is no joke. Birbiglia once walked off the second floor of a Walla Walla, Washington, hotel and lived to tell the tale. The injury required 33 stitches. Birbiglia has a scar and some great anecdotes.

“It’s a funny story that almost killed me,” Birbiglia said while calling from New York.

Like they say, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger and Birbiglia’s career has grown considerably since “Sleepwalk with Me” debuted off-Broadway in 2008.

In 2011, his second one-man show, “My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend” was inspired by the number of mistakes Birbiglia has made in relationships. Those experiences made Birbiglia reluctant to get married but he tied the knot with poet J. Hope Stein in 2008. The couple, who have a daughter, remain happily married.

Birbiglia crafts relatable material but it’s refreshingly atypical. “I don’t think I write like how a lot of comedians write,” Birbiglia said. “The writing can’t be about me. It’s got to be about everyone. That's what makes what I do work.”

Challenges bring out the best in Birbiglia, who is just as adept behind the camera as he is onstage. “Making a movie was the hardest thing I've ever done in my life,” Birbiglia said. “It was harder than being beaten up by bullies in middle school. But it was much more educational than being beaten up by bullies. Directing a film is such an involved art form because it's a combination of about seven different art forms, photography, storytelling, acting, music and more.”

Fittingly another unique comic inspired Birbiglia to write jokes. He was moved to become a humorist as a teenager after catching left of center comic Steven Wright. While attending Georgetown University, he graduated in 2000 with a degree in English, Birbiglia performed as a member of the Georgetown Players Improv Troupe with John Mulaney and Nick Kroll.

“I directed short films in college, comedies with sad characters,” Birbiglia said. “I lost a lot of money. But I was all in when it comes to creating.”

It helps that Birbiglia has an exceptional work ethic. He's like a human shark who never stops moving. "It all starts with writing," Birbiglia said. "You see how your material works. If it doesn't work, make changes … It’s about trial and error. You have to put the time in. Then you can see what will happen. You really have to want it. Writing is hard work. You have to be all in."

Birbiglia has also impressed as an actor. "Trainwreck," "Going the Distance" and "Your Sister's Sister" are some of his film credits. "Girls," "Broad City" and "Inside Amy Schumer" are some of the television shows Birbiglia has appeared in over the years.

“I like variety and I like to challenge myself,” Birbiglia said. “But I always go back to stand-up. I’m excited about seeing where I can go with stand-up. The great thing is that anything can happen when you get on that stage.”