Van Buren manages between Fort Smith metropolitan gravity and Crawford County small-town identity. Main Street rooms fill with commuters who work across the river, while Downtown hosts the families who've been here for generations. Historic District draws the cultural energy. Alma and Kibler add the residential layers. The comedy here reads the tension between metro proximity and Arkansas-side permanence. Open mics become the space where both identities converge. Comics who grasp Van Buren's dual rhythm find audiences relieved someone recognized the city keeps its Old Frisco Depot soul while the bridge connects everything to Oklahoma.