Comedic thought matters
Skidmore College is a small liberal arts school, but it is a mighty hub for comedy.
With four improv and sketch groups bursting with aspiring talent and a 30-year tradition of hosting the National College Comedy Festival, it makes one wonder: is Skidmore the perfect place to pursue comedy?
I have a hunch that the answer is “Yes.” Here’s why.
Our comedic culture
In my early years at Skidmore, Friday nights meant one thing: gathering in a crowded auditorium at 9 p.m. — every seat, step and spare space occupied — to watch the transformation of accomplished intellectuals into gaggles of giggling, carefree spirits.
Who were the wizards that could create such magic? Our own friends and peers, members of one of Skidmore’s comedy clubs — Skidomedy, Sketchies, Ad-Libs or Awkward Kids Talking.
Sometimes they performed stand-up, other times it was more of a “Whose Line is it Anyway?”-style improv event. Every time, and no matter the group, they left us with side cramps and tears pouring down our faces.
Picture this: creative and daring students, equipped with nothing but quick wit and active imaginations, asking the audience for a word. The crowd erupts. Only the weirdest, most random, loudest word survives (think turnip, pineapple, Scrunchie). And then the comedians are off, effortlessly composing a layered story, anticipating one another’s moves and phrases, running across the stage … and laughing (it’s probably difficult to keep a straight face when you’re talking about your missing pineapple).
These Friday nights — vignettes of our student culture — just feel so Skidmore.
Our national stage
For the past 30 years, Skidmore has hosted the National College Comedy Festival, ComFest for short, showcasing improv and sketch groups from colleges around the country and cultivating a legion of all-star comedians and actors.
The festival’s co-founder, David Miner ’91, is now an Emmy Award-winning producer known for "30 Rock,” "Parks and Recreation" and “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.” Michael Zegen ’01, a ComFest alumnus, is now on the Amazon Prime hit series, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.” And those are only two.
ComFest alumni also fill the cast and writers’ rooms of television shows like “The Office,” “Community,” “Bob’s Burgers” and “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” and films like “Our Idiot Brother.”
What’s the connection between Skidmore’s festival and future red carpets and silver screens? Perhaps it’s that ComFest is a mashup of both student and professional talent, with built-in networking between soon-to-be stars and bona fide celebrities.
This year, those celebrities included Hari Kondabolu, Carmen Lagala, Demi Adejuyigbe and Paranormal Comedy, an improv group that isn’t as scary as it sounds. Past professional acts have included Upright Citizens Brigade, The Improvised Shakespeare Company and Derrick Comedy, a group that features a ComFest alumnus.
This festival — an exhibit of what happens when you give burgeoning talent the main stage — just feels so Skidmore.
Our creativity
After binge-watching every Netflix comedy special, I consider myself a quasi-expert. Don’t get me wrong, I will never perform stand-up myself. But what I’ve taken away from my “research” is that successful comedy is a perfect blend of three things — vulnerability, creativity and the freedom to be a little weird.
In Skidmore words, it’s believing that Creative Thought Matters.
This belief permeates everything we do. We accept others' quirks. We are a cohesive and like-minded team, yet equally open-minded and individual. We accept every perspective because it means making the whole bigger, better and more inclusive.
No matter what we're meant to be or do, believing that Creative Thought Matters means we'll always try — and that just feels so Skidmore.
The perfect place for comedy
A culture where students regularly get together to laugh. A nationally acclaimed comedy festival that could be your big break. An underlying philosophy that encourages you to try.
Once you get to know us, it's easy to see why we're a small school with big-time comedy chops.
Empowering passions with creativity — that is just so Skidmore.