Grand Rapids’ Historic Fountain Street Church To Appear In New Netflix Special

Like many of us, a portion of my night is dedicated to seeing what the Algorithm Gods have deemed worthy of appearing on my feed for my nightly entertainment. Among the nonsensical slop that shows up are legitimate comedians, namely Taylor Tomlinson, whom I have become quite a fan of over the years.

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So when I saw she was coming to town for not one, not two, but three shows in Grand Rapids as part of her Save Me Tour, I was pretty ecstatic. Until I realized I was out of town that weekend and would be unable to attend.

But it appears luck was on my side after all: the entire show was filmed and will be released as a Netflix comedy special, a special that was filmed in one of the more unexpected locations in town: the Fountain Street Church.

Taylor Tomlinson at the Fountain Street Church

Typically, a church is not the first place you'd think of for a comedy show, but that's exactly why she chose to do it there. Throughout the trailer for Taylor's latest special, Prodigal Daughter, shots of the Fountain Street Church are prominently featured.

The entire tour and subject matter of the special have religious themes, with this special said to be about "deconstructing your faith, processing religious trauma, exploring your sexuality, and confronting your fear of death." Given its focus on religious themes and sexuality, the LGBTQ-inclusive church is arguably the best place for a set like this.

It will be released on Netflix on February 24th.

Tomlinson and Religion

Religion is a common topic in Tomlinson's routines, as she grew up in the church and has a complicated relationship with faith. So, considering the exact definition of a prodigal daughter is

"A son/daughter who leaves his or her parents to do things that they do not approve of but then feels sorry and returns home,"

the title of the special is quite fitting, considering she left the church, dropped out of college, became a comedian, came out as queer, and has now found herself right back where she started. She is the prodigal daughter.

This is Tomlinson's fourth stand-up special, with her three previous specials, Quarter-Life Crisis, Look At You, and Have It All, also available on Netflix.