Iconic comedian fakes cardiac arrest onstage after revealing she had open-heart surgery
During her debut performance, the 69-year-old comedian — who once counted Madonna as a close friend — revealed to the audience she recently had open-heart surgery.
'It was a planned surgery; it wasn't that dramatic,' the actress noted before mentioning other patients in the hospital who were in grave condition.
'This s**t is crazy. I'm gonna pull through and get the f*** out of here,' she said, according to an account from Billboard.
Bernhard moved the show along, before later returning to the subject to use it as an unexpected punchline.
She clutched her chest and slumped over, simulating a heart attack before quipping, 'That's a new party trick.'
In addition to cracking jokes, the multihyphenate entertainer sang a selection of cover songs with her Sandyland Squad Band.
Together, they covered recognizable tunes including McFadden & Whitehead's Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now and Lana Del Rey's Young and Beautiful.
Sandra's partner of more than two decades, Sara Switzer, was part of the 90-person audience during opening night.
On Wednesday she took to Instagram, where she boasts nearly 200,000 followers, and reflected on her first show.
Last night @cafecarlyle [was] fun as hell. The band was beautiful, the crowd divine. I'm there tonight through Saturday. Won't you come join us?' she captioned.
'I would if I were you!' she added before crediting her band and her hair and makeup team.
For the occasion the Michigan-bred beauty wore a coordinating orange and red top and skirt covered in large round sequins.
Her shoulder-length ginger-toned locks were parted down the middle and styled in bouncy ringlets.
Cafe Carlyle also promoted her stint at the venue with a supportive social media post.
'Sandra Bernhard made her Café Carlyle debut last night and brought the house down with her one-woman show,' the Instagram account touted.
The note continued, 'With her signature mix of cabaret, comedy, and cultural commentary, she delivered razor sharp wit and unapologetic satire.'
The post concluded, 'There's only one @sandragbernhard and she's live through May 3.'
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