Theatre VCU searches for the funniest Ram on campus

Michael Todd
Assistant Spectrum Editor

After last year’s “An Evening of Stand-Up Comedy,” Theatre VCU is now raising the comedic stakes with their search for VCU’s funniest sketch and stand-up comedians at VCU.

Ramapalooza will take place the last two weekends in September. The first weekend will determine the “funniest Ram on campus,” who will act as the host of the second weekend, which will feature two nights of sketch and stand-up comedy.

John Porter, a comedian and outside consultant to Theatre VCU for the event, compared the second weekend of Ramapalooza to an extended version of Saturday Night Live.

Ramapalooza is open to anyone with a current connection to VCU. This includes not only faculty and students, but also hourly employees. The event welcomes sketch comedy writers and performers and also welcomes individuals who are interested in comedic writing and performing.

“It’s not just one group of people … who are funny,” Porter said. “Everybody has got humor in them.”

Auditions take place over two weekends, with auditions for stand-up April 20 and 21, and auditions for sketch comedy April 27 and 28. For stand-up comedy, Porter will ask those auditioning to tell him a two minute story from their lives that holds potential for comedy material. For sketch comedy, those auditioning will do improv.

For the event, Theatre VCU is bringing in two special guests to help coach participants in the art of turning everyday life into humor.

On April 14, Theatre VCU sent out a campus-wide invitation for an evening with Judy Carter, a mother figure in the comedy world with her bestselling novel “The Comedy Bible.” Carter used the evening to share her story about making a living through comedy. Carter will also be instructing a series of comedy workshops throughout this upcoming week.

“I’m going to show them that their life is a joke,” Carter said of her upcoming workshops. “I’m going to show them how to turn their problems into punchlines, and how all the messes in our lives and the things that go wrong make great comedy material.”

Some workshops will feature material writing workshops based on experiences from participants live. Others will address the business side of comedy, such as interviews.

“When we write material, it’s quite an intense operation, because 99 percent of what you write sucks, and then you take the 1 percent and you’ve got to punch it up and hone it,” Carter said.

Though students will create all their own material, Porter will act as a coach to participants, training them on their performance presence, how to interact with audience, how to hone their material and how to be comfortable on stage.

“The great thing about sketch and improv is that if we’re funny and good, you’re going to laugh and have a great time,” Porter said. “And if we really go out and stink up the joint, you’re going to laugh even harder. So you’re guaranteed a good time no matter what happens.”

Beginning in mid-August, Porter will offer assistance as students begin to write their material. There will be six to eight weeks of rehearsal with rehearsals six days a week, with about three days a week for both sketch and stand-up participants.

While the format is still a competitive one, Porter hopes that the environment will be one of mutual support.

Though Ramapalooza will result in two weekends of original comedy, Porter and Carter hope that the event will communicate the true value of comedy to VCU.

Carter believes that comedy both can and should act as a vehicle for talking about sensitive or controversial topics.

“Our job as comics is to tell the truth in a funny way, and make waves. Create some controversy,” Carter said. “If you’re not making trouble as a comic, you’re playing it safe.”

Both Porter and Carter said the most successful comedy comes from real experience and that often what is problematic in life is actually the perfect material for the stage.

“We comics are the ones who admit that our life is a joke, and admitting those things and making them funny is our challenge,” Carter said. “Most people are like, ‘Hi, how are you? Fine.’ We comics are like, ‘Hi, how are you? Sad.’ Or, ‘Hi, how are you? Can’t get laid.’ That’s the truth, and the truth is always funny. It’s just getting to it.”

If Ramapalooza proves a success during the fall semester, Porter is hopeful that the event may become an annual occurrence on VCU’s main stage.

“Comedy is a great thing for anybody … because our life is surrounded by so much that’s not comedic,” Porter said. “We need that escape valve, we need to be able to look at things slightly askew … to help us find a light at the end of the tunnel that isn’t a train coming in our direction.”