With the lights dimmed, the speakers pounded music and the anxious crowd sang and danced in their seats. The actors’ silhouettes were projected on stage as they set up for their first sketch. When the dark lights turned bright, the room quieted as members began speaking their lines.
IU’s longest-running sketch comedy group, Boy in the Bubble, put on its second show of the year Sept. 14. Following a stand-up performance by senior Betsy Snider, the event featured sketches of varying lengths about topics ranging from eating alone at a restaurant to sea turtles being killed by plastic straws to being stuck in a back-to-school commercial.
The group also introduced three new members who performed alongside the veteran members. Freshman Ava Gerber had attended a few of the shows prior to coming to this show and said she was excited to see what they would create this year with the new members.
“You never really know what to expect,” Gerber said. “They always come up with the most random and ridiculous sketches, so I just think it’s super fun and entertaining.”
Members of the group either write sketches on their own or collaborate with each other. Most of the sketches are inspired from the members' day-to-day lives.
Sophomore Laura Nix, who joined the group last year, grew up watching the television program “Saturday Night Live” and came to college knowing she wanted to join a comedy group. It takes her anywhere from 20 minutes to a few hours to write a sketch.
“For me, most sketches grow from one line or word I may have overheard from someone in public,” Nix said. “When I’m hanging out and laughing with my friends, I’m now constantly thinking, ‘How can I turn this into a sketch?’”
The process of creating that week’s performance begins when sketches are pitched Monday and Tuesday. Edits are then done Wednesday, directing and blocking Thursday, with rehearsal and the performance Saturday.
“My favorite thing about performing in the group is the feeling you get when you say a line you have practiced so many times and finally hear a laugh from the audience,” Nix said. “It’s so rewarding to make people laugh after working so hard.”
The group’s next show is 9:30 to 10:30 p.m. Sept. 28 in Fine Arts 015.
