Sandra Bernhard Returning To Guild Hall

There are few people in the world who command a stage quite like Sandra Bernhard.

Hamptons residents will once again get the chance to see her onstage when she returns to Guild Hall’s John Drew Theater on Friday, July 8, for a performance of her latest touring show, “Feel The Bernhard.” The comedy veteran has been busy with her new daily radio show, “Sandyland,” on SiriusXM’s Radio Andy channel, run by TV personality Andy Cohen. She’s also made recent appearances on hit TV comedies such as “2 Broke Girls” and “Brooklyn Nine-Nine.”

Though the title of her new live show may suggest a salute to Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders and a hint of some edgy political content to come, Ms. Bernhard said it’s not that heavy-handed.

“It was just to do a little nod to the election season,” Ms. Bernhard said during a recent phone interview. “The show isn’t really political, per se.”

Ms. Bernhard has plenty of material to put into her live show, which features her discussing her life story in her own unique way and performing music. She ’s written entirely new material for each show she’s done over the years, and now her radio show gives her a garden of topics to pick and choose from. She says that she’ll take a topic she discussed on the radio and expand on it into a more “fleshed-out” piece onstage. Ms. Bernhard tries to be on the cutting edge at all times and she’s proud of her work ethic.

“There’s nobody that I know who writes as much material for their live shows as much as I do,” Ms. Bernhard said. “I mean, I’ve gone to see people over the years and they’re doing the same stuff they did 15 years ago. And I’m not saying I don’t take select pieces from old shows and do them again—because it’s like doing your greatest hits. But in terms of the bulk of the show, I’m always writing the material.”

As far as content for her radio show goes, Ms. Bernhard doesn’t have any kind of agenda aside from doing what she does best: tell stories.

“My work’s always very personal, very anecdotal,” she said. “They’re smaller ideas that I like to spin out into more global things.”

One global thing that she’s been talking about recently is the June 12 mass shooting in Orlando, Florida. When such serious events happen in the world, Ms. Bernhard prefers to let things process in her brain instead of jumping online to make a statement.

“I try not to comment on issues in a very didactic way,” she said. “I sort of let them process in my head and then talk about them in my own way.”

There isn’t too much separation from Sandra onstage and Sandra on the air. Ms. Bernhard brings a similar approach to talking topics with guests including rocker Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders and actress Jane Fonda. She starts her show with 10 minutes of improvisational talks about what’s going on in her life, and then works casual conversation into discussion on current events. Ms. Bernhard said the most captivating things on her show are bantering with comedian Judy Gold or going on funny tangents with actress Wendi McLendon-Covey of “Reno 911!” and “The Goldbergs.”

“I like talking about things that have resonance and emotion,” Ms. Bernhard said. “I like things that are small and funny and off-beat and quirky. That covers a wide range of topics. I think people come to me because I’m a storyteller and I take people deep into my emotional psyche.”

Ms. Bernhard stays in her own special lane and doesn’t worry about the current state of the spoken-word circuit or stand-up comedy.

“It doesn’t really matter to me,” she said. “I mean, I may admire people and it’s always interesting to see things continue to evolve, but I don’t really look to other people to take my cue. I feel like I’ve always been somebody who’s pushed the envelope and kept moving the needle forward.”

Ms. Bernhard has been in and out of the public eye for years, which has led to her talking about the worlds of actors and musicians. While today’s public has immediate access to the lives of famous people thanks to social media, and poking fun at celebrities is a near-requirement for popular stand-up comics, she tries to avoid bringing it up so much in her own work.

“I’ve kind of hung out and known everyone imaginable, you know? I am interested in pop culture, but I’ve always tried to keep it real. I’m not swept up in things by any means, at least not at this point in my life, but I still find it captivating to see people holding court garner other people’s interest. My work used to be a lot more about celebrity than it is now. But because of the culture and the way we are with social media, I’ve kind of pulled away from it because I can’t bring as much to it as I could 15 years ago.”

Though Ms. Bernhard is often described as a comedian, she said she has never seen herself as a “joke-teller.” She believes the humor of her stories comes through the way she tells them, and there’s a key to making it work for every single one of her shows.

“It’s like acting; you’ve got to stay in the moment and commit to your piece. You’ve got to find a way night after night to sound like you’ve never told a story before.”

Sandra Bernhard’s “Feel The Bernhard” comes to Guild Hall, 158 Main Street, East Hampton, on Friday, July 8, at 8 p.m. Tickets, ranging from $45 to $100, are available at guildhall.org or by calling 631-324-4050.