Dante Powell hosts one of Iowa’s hottest comedy shows: ‘I’m not bootlicking, I’m not tip-toeing. I am who I am’

Dante Powell is on a roll. The Louisiana-born comic has clocked thousands of miles as both a truck driver and a comedian. Powell has called Des Moines his home for over a decade, headlining shows in the capital while hitting the road in major cities with Greg Gulman, Janelle James, Rory Scovel and other gods of indie comedy. The key to Powell’s success is the man himself: grounded, insightful and absolutely ready to start some shit. 

Dante’s Comedy Revue is a monthly residency at The Ingersoll, Des Moines’ premium dinner theater, which reopened in January after extensive renovations. On any other night, the spot may be subdued, even downright posh — but when Powell takes the stage as host, backed by a house band and slick production value, it becomes an actual feast. 

“He has such a playful way of getting the audience involved,” said Tim Overton, fellow Des Moines comedian and executive producer of the Revue. “So if he’s got the mic, it’s going to be fun.”

The two men have known each other since 2014, when they took the same improv classes at West Des Moines’ now-defunct Last Laugh Comedy Theater. 

“He was always present while still messing around,” Overton said. “You could always see there was something special about him.”

Both Overton and Powell have risen in their respective fields, improv and stand-up, in the years since they met, but Dante’s Comedy Revue brought them back together. Depending on the night, Overton’s duties range from writing, graphics and logistics to simply offering support for his friend. 

“This is a premium show that could compete with any other big venue in the country. We could do this in Chicago or anywhere else,” he said. “To have that in the Des Moines community is wild.”

To celebrate Powell’s new show, and his opening for Rondell Sheridan at The Ingersoll, Little Village connected over Zoom to talk about big rigs, bigger gigs and telling jokes in Trump country. 

You’ve worked as a truck driver. You’ve toured as a comedian. Were there any overlaps between life on the road between either job?

Those lonely nights when you’re out there, and you’re in the middle of Kentucky and you gotta stay the night at a truck stop, and then get up in the morning and take a shower at some place, and you’re meeting all of these weirdos and you have to learn how to communicate with them — after that, there’s no comedy audience that can get to me. I mean, I’ve walked into places where the shippers and receivers are way more intimidating than you not laughing. OK, don’t laugh, cool. This person over here might murder me. [Laughs]

As an instructor, you’re handling how other drivers get trained for their Commercial Driver’s License. Has your time in comedy affected this role?

Now that I’m teaching others, I’m thinking about how comedy has actually prepared me. What does it actually matter, all of the small stuff? You’re coming to me so you can train so that you can get a job to support your family. Focus on that. Don’t worry about all this extra stuff. That’s been my comedy life; I used to be so engrossed in squabbles or politics or whatever. Then one day it was like, “Oh, I have these beautiful twin daughters who matter more than anything. My wife is gorgeous. I could be kissing her on the mouth instead of arguing on Facebook. What am I doing?” 

Any advice for comics who are also working dads?

Definitely use the help that you have. My wife has been great with all of this. I try to be present with the kids, so I just spend a lot of time with them. So if I have a show this weekend, she never flinches. And she is good for us taking the comedy money. 

And find your balance. I used to be on the road doing these $200 gigs that were six hours from home in a snowstorm. Instead of doing eight of those a year, I’m just gonna call a bigger comedian, just see if they have a weekend for me somewhere in a bigger town, make my five grand and that’ll be that. 

Sounds like this took some time to figure out.

Yes. All I gotta do is be funny. Be writing, stay on point. I’ve been fortunate enough that I can call in these favors, and if they tell me “Oh, that’s so good.” Lock in, remember what’s important, and if it works, go for it. Don’t let other people’s ideas of success determine what you do. 

Are there any plans for another album? [Powell’s 2020 live comedy album, The Squirrels Get Fat, released on his label Stand Up! Records and reached No. 1 on the iTunes and Amazon comedy charts.]

The next album is mostly ready. It’s 100 percent done, but I’m 85 percent happy with it. I think I can get that other 15 percent, I really do. I have some fun stuff I want to do with this one. If I can shoot my special at The Ingersoll, that’d be really dope. Hopefully sometime this summer I can get everything with Stand-Up! Records and the venue in order. 

Do you have any feelings on how it means to be a Black voice in a state that voted for Trump?

Think about it like this: I grew up in Louisiana, where I would have been a Black voice in a state that voted for Trump. I’m living the majority Black experience in America. Most Black people are already living in places that voted for Trump. 

I always try to keep the perspective that if I just find my people, I’m probably gonna be alright. And that’s what I’ve been doing. Just writing jokes that are honest — I’m not bootlicking, I’m not tip-toeing. I am who I am, and the people who like that are gonna be in community with me. My life is dope. 

That doesn’t mean I’m gonna ignore the realities. [I’m] a Black dude living in Iowa, and white people are suddenly realizing, “Oh, we might not be safe.” That’s a problem for you guys to fix, because we’ve already been doing this. 

You went viral on Tumblr for taking a photo with a box of Honey Nut Cheerios. [He posed with the cereal while the photographer adjusted lighting during a formal shoot. Powell posted the image to Tumblr in 2016, where it currently has over 1.3 million shares.] What was the weirdest piece of feedback that came out of it?

That’s the beauty of traveling for stand-up. I’ve seen it randomly a few times. Where was I? Eau Claire? Eau Claire really likes me. Saw it on a telephone pole. And Memphis. I don’t do that town a lot, but I was on an electrical box in Memphis. I was in shock. 

Have you had any people shape who you are as a comedian?

Gary Gulman. He’s the person who has me open for him when he has 2,000-seat theaters that he sold out, in Indianapolis or Madison. I work with him and the next weekend I see some of the greatest praising him. To have him in my life and as a mentor has been super helpful. 

Then there’s Janelle James, who I get to watch blossom and just be great. She didn’t change, she didn’t adjust, she just kept being her same awesome self and then everything else dealt with that. That’s big for someone like me, who doesn’t want to chase fame. 

And it’s hard to express how much I love the Des Moines comedy scene. The heartbeat is always going, I’ve been appreciative to be a part of it myself. The love I have for starting here and reaching where I am in my career without having to go somewhere else, it’s immense. 

What can we expect in your shows at The Ingersoll?

We’re doing it as tribute to late night. I come and do a monologue. I’m usually not that animated with my stand-up on stage; but with this, I get to dig in, see what’s possible. 

So if it’s late-night style, do you have a house band? Yes, led by the incomparable David Altemeier. Listen, my walkout music is “Before I Let Go” by Frankie Beverly and Maze. You can’t tell me nothin’! My mom has seen videos of me walking out to this and is like, “They… they doin’ it.”  

That sounds fun as hell. [Laughing] And they’re called The Powell Rangers!  

Upcoming event:

An Evening with Rondell Sheriden featuring Dante Powell, March 6 & 7, 7:30 p.m., The Ingersoll, Des Moines

This article was originally published in Little Village’s March 2026 issue.