While Hannah Gadsby’s stand-up comedy show Nanette (2018) has been received by some as cringe comedy, others have turned away in anger at what they saw as cringeworthy but unfunny. Understandably, a comedy show based on the comedian’s trauma growing up in Tasmania, where homosexuality was a criminal offense until 1997, is bound to be controversial. However, Nanette’s credibility and power stems from Gadsby’s firm grasp on both narrative and humor strategies. I propose to explore Nanette through an analysis of its comic structure and the place of the audience in that structure, as well as the role of Netflix in assuring that Nanette functions as they (Gadsby) intended. I will examine the coherence of the script, the changing personas Gadsby employs and introduce the concept of stand-up comedy audience persona. Working with the concepts of humor competence and performance, I will show how Nanette, in questioning comedy, subsequently invites audiences to take a closer look at their own persona. Nanette, in revealing the skeleton of comedy, not only opens new possibilities for accepting alterity, but paves an empathetic path to compassionate concern.