Jackson Free Press

Plenty of people know Tig Notaro, even if they don't remember from where. The comedian has appeared on a number of primetime television series, including "The Office," "Community" and "Bob's Burgers." Her acting resume also boasts film roles in "Walk of Shame" with Elizabeth Banks, "Shreveport" with Ryan Phillippe, and writer and actor Lake Bell's "In a World," which won Best Screenplay at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival.

What many don't know is that Notaro, 44, is a Mississippi native who was born in Jackson. She spent her first years in Pass Christian, and her family moved to Spring, Texas, when she was in kindergarten.

"They were both places that I always went back to over the summers and over the holidays," she says of her hometowns. Notaro has family spread throughout the South: Her father lived in Hattiesburg, her grandmother in Jackson, and many members of her family are in New Orleans. "I have nothing but fond memories of being there. My family is just really remarkable and progressive for small-town, Deep South-type folks."

Notaro lived in Spring until she dropped out of high school in the 9th grade. She went to Denver, Colo., and worked as a band manager for a short time before heading to Los Angeles. About that time, she began pursuing her passion for stand-up comedy, one that she developed watching Richard Pryor, Steve Martin and countless HBO specials. By the time she was about 26, stand-up comedy was Notaro's full-time career.

Where many comedians write, rewrite, rehearse and perform their jokes over a long period of time, Notaro's performances are always different because they have to be: She mostly improvises her material onstage. She may enter the occasional word or phrase into her cell phone for reference, but the jokes come from whatever is on her mind at that second.

"I think it's just more in the moment," Notaro says. "I think that when I write onstage, it has more of a fight-or-flight-type feeling, and I feel like my brain has to work a lot faster because there's an entire audience waiting for me. And I feel like it works better. I feel sharper."

Comic improvisation isn't her only skill, though. Notaro is in the process of writing a memoir about a difficult four-month period of her life that is set for release early next year. She also wrote and directed a short film, "Clown Service," that premieres Friday, April 10, at the Crossroads Film Festival.

"I was, in my life, going through a break-up years ago, and hanging out with a friend of mine at her place in Dallas," Notaro says of the impetus behind the film. "I told her the only thing that would make me laugh or make me happy would be if I ordered a clown to come over. She thought that was hilarious, and she said, 'You know, if you can get a clown to come over, I'll pay for it.'"

Ultimately, the Dallas party company denied Notaro's request because they were dubious about sending a clown to entertain two adult women. That didn't stop Notaro from fulfilling her wishful scenario in "Clown Service."

"There are a lot of awkward moments in it," she says of the film. "I feel like there's so much comedy in awkwardness. ... When I was in real life calling the clown, that's what was amusing to me: the thought of this person being uncomfortable and confused, headed to my house, and the awkward exchange, one on one."

While many viewers will relate to her character's emotional state, Notaro says audiences will also find plenty in common with the clown.

"I think anyone can relate to not being in the mood for something, kind of the perspective of the clown, when you're not in the mood to be on or available to the world, but you have to just keep pushing through."

Tig Notaro performs 8 p.m. Tuesday, April 14, at Brewsky's (3818 W. 4th St., Hattiesburg, 601-261-2888), with host Hub City Comedy. See "Clown Service" 6 p.m. Friday, April 10, at Malco Grandview Cinema (221 Grandview Blvd., Madison, 601-898-7819) during the Crossroads Film Festival. For more information on Notaro, visit tignation.com.