Ridiculum Showcases Stand-Up Comedy Newcomers

DJ Comerford, Staff Writer

Following its last improv show in late February, the Ridiculum Improv Comedy Club recently hosted a stand-up comedy show on Wednesday, Mar. 9 at the Mullen Center for the Performing Arts.

The club pursues its comedic talent through stand-up comedy and improvised scenarios. The club held its first stand-up comedy show of the semester last Wednesday night at 7 p.m. in the Mullen Center. This show featured many of Ridiculum’s newest recruits.

The show itself consisted of eight comics performing stand-up sets for five to 10 minutes. Each set was unique and not only comical, but also passionate. The comics talked about the topics they felt strongly about and did so in a witty manner.

Each comic was introduced by the host, freshman Isabella Ledet, and came onto the stage to a song they chose to set the mood. Some comics even did a little dance or, in senior Lucia Grill’s case, a cartwheel.

Grill gave her thoughts on the night.

“I thought it went really well,” Grill said. “Everyone was well prepared and delivered their sets perfectly. It was my first show, but the other members were saying they think this was the best stand up show since the club was started a few years ago”

For some members, it was their first stand up show ever. One of these members was junior DJ Comerford. He had a wide range of jokes, ranging from turtles to Dollar Tree. 

Another first-time member had a successful set. Sophomore Tyler Shepherd joked about the absurdity of Zodiac signs. He also talked about the struggles of being an Engineering major and how people like the Green M&M a little too much.

Junior Siobhan Dillon engaged the audience during her stand-up set with stories of her unhinged Twitter rants.  

“I thought the show went really well and I’m proud of how great and funny everyone was,” Dillon said.

Longtime member and senior Andrew Mister was the last performer of the night. He left the audience in stitches. 

Mister shared his overall thoughts on the show.

“I was really happy with how it went because we had some new performers this time, and I know how scary that first time on stage can be,” Mister said. “I thought they all did really well. I was even pleasantly surprised to see that some people who were making last-minute changes and were nervous before the show not only met the challenge, but really took control of the audience. It just makes me excited to know that the young faces in the club have some bright futures ahead of them.”

The club had a great showing, with dozens of people coming out to support the group on a school night. The audience demographic consisted of a wide range, from parents to friends of the comics.

The audience also played a big role in the performances. They seemed to want the comics to do well and laughed for all the comedians. However, this was not very hard to do, since all the material was well-written and well-delivered. 

The night was a success. The club made stand-up comedy look easy and had a good time doing so. It could not have gone better.

Ridiculum is always looking for new members and can be reached at [email protected].

The club plans to have its next show on Apr. 9, which will feature more stand-up comedy.