In a collection of essays by writer and journalist Joan Didion, its title, Slouching Towards Bethlehem, was inspired by the W.B. Yeats poem, “The Second Coming”. The poem describes a vision of the second coming of Christ, with the final two verses stating:

And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,

Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?

The preface of Didion’s book spoke to musician and alt-comic Will Wood in a way he didn’t quite expect. When he announced his 2023 album, In Case I Die, as his final release, his plan was to separate the artist from the human. It turned into a two year hiatus and a comeback featuring his most scripted performance to date.

His solo performances typically featured theatrical and comedic elements, but Slouching Towards Branson was far more structured than anything he had done before. It is more than a concert film or a comedy special, but a project filled with semi-fictional storytelling and beloved songs from across his discography. The show explores Wood’s experiences during his creative hiatus through a comedic yet occasionally dramatic lens, touching on personal revelations and absurd encounters, exploring themes of belief, morality and living through cultural upheaval.

“It was the biggest and arguably most important tour of my life, and when it was a few months out I realized I owed it to myself and the audience to give everyone my biggest and most concerted effort,” he said.

On his journey to rediscover who Will Wood the human was, he realized that the fictionalized version of himself that his audience knew needed to be eliminated. It was important that he express himself in a way that distances him from the way he had previously been perceived.

“You’ll never reach the people you’re meant to reach if you try to sustain the interest of people you aren’t,” he said. “Not that I’m going out of my way to push back, more that I’m working hard to push forward. Become more and more myself.”

From an artistic point of view, Slouching Towards Branson shares messages of forgiveness, acceptance, and the value of letting go and letting life live you. A crucial element of getting those messages across involved Wood’s frequent collaborator, Jake Feldman. His vision has brought to life music videos for “White Noise” and “Sex Drugs Rock n Roll”, and his dedication to the craft is exactly what Wood needed when it came to filming this tour.

Filming Slouching Towards Branson was always the plan, but releasing it was another idea altogether. Wood knew that there was a chance the show would not be well received. That worry was felt in a major way when he dealt with poorly behaved audiences that disrupted the show by shouting over him, pounding their fists against their tables or placing objects on the stage.

A few disrespectful people did not stop the majority of shows being a “wonderfully fulfilling, intimate experience.” Wood’s plan to move away from his fictionalized self worked.

“The most rewarding moments were when I was able to pause on the more emotional lines in the show and really feel the silent potential energy coming off the audience,” he said. “Big laughs are always fun, and when a particularly opinionated joke gets applause is rewarding, but knowing I hit something deeper is an incredible experience. I am an energy vampire.”

In the preface of Slouching Towards Bethlehem, Didion writes, “I had been paralyzed by the conviction that writing was an irrelevant act, that the world as I understood it no longer existed. If I were ever to be able to work again, it’d be necessary for me to come to terms with disorder.” Will Wood has come to terms with his life as an artist. Will there be another time in his life where stepping away is the key to finding himself again? Maybe. He recognized that it is part of the journey, and with an authentic Will Wood at the center of the stage, anything can happen.