IU sketch comedy group, Boy in the Bubble Comedy expanded its group by welcoming three new members into their ranks. IU freshman Jesse Kunst, sophomore Grace Parton and junior Claudia Logan have joined the comedy group’s stage this semester and are ready to bring the laughs to Boy in the Bubble’s comedy fans.
The group had their “new kids” show at the Fine Arts Building on Feb. 1. Though this was Kunst, Parton and Logan’s first performance with the group, Sarah Warf, IU junior and co-president of Boy in the Bubble, said she was delightfully surprised.
“Their first show was incredible,” Warf said. “They brought a very natural presence to the stage that was impressive for their first performance.”
In any comedy group, teamwork is essential. While members of Boy in the Bubble individually write sketches to pitch to the group, performers must be familiar with each other to collaborate on stage. Warf said this collaboration was something the new members did well while still bringing their own comedic style to the group.
“They are all so fun to be around and they each have a unique sense of humor that they bring to the table,” Warf said. “It's important to have your own comedic voice but be willing to find how it exists amongst a larger group, and they all do that very well.”
This blend of comedic styles can be seen in the sketches that are chosen for their shows. A week before their performance, members will pitch the sketches they’ve written throughout that week. The group will then vote on the sketches and form a show incorporating the range of voices.
“They just encourage everyone in the group to write material and like, give everyone the chance to pitch their own skits and stuff,” Kunst said. “And because they let everyone write, you kind of get to see everyone's styles. It's kind of like a blend of everyone's stuff.”
For the Boy in the Bubble callbacks auditionees were required to bring a sketch they had written themselves. When it comes to his own creative style Kunst finds himself writing more situational comedy in his sketches.
“Personally, my style, I would say, is just kind of very situational comedy, drawing connections, catching people off guard, rather than, you know, coming up with some huge punch line that we're holding towards,” Kunst said. “I'm more drawn towards both creating and kind of consuming comedy that's very natural and situational and organic.”
Being comfortable on stage is also something that these performers must be good at. All three new members have been on the stage before – Kunst acted in high school and Logan participated in Destination Imagination, a global organization that provides challenges related to STEAM subjects to students, from middle school to early high school. Parton, whose current major is costume design and who also acted in high school, has been around the stage more than most. While also working on shows with the University Players, Parton said her schedule this semester has given her the time to audition for the group.
“This semester, I didn't have much going on, so I kind of wanted to take the opportunity,” Parton said. “I'd been to a few shows before, and Bubble was always my favorite, so I wanted to try it out.”
Parton said it was her first time acting in a sketch comedy setting and in a group like Boy in the Bubble where members only get a week of rehearsals before their next performance it can be a little frightening.
“When I first heard that, it was really daunting, because it seemed just like so much work to get done in one week,” Parton said. “But, yeah, it gets worked out really well.”
Boy in the Bubble’s strong community is also something that appealed to the new members. Outside of just performing together, the group has established a welcoming environment for its members. Though their new kids show did not include all its members, Logan still felt welcomed by everyone in the group whether she performed with them or not.
“I mean, I hadn’t even spoken to Harley (Babbitt), and he came up to me after the show and was like, ‘You did awesome. Like, that was awesome, Claudia.’” Logan said. “And then, like, I went to his house afterwards, and he was just talking to me like we were buddies and I was like this is cool.”
Looking forward, the new members hope to continue the momentum they saw in their first performance as they head into their next show on Feb. 15. A large crowd, lots of laughs and a welcoming audience are just some of the things they hope to see in the Fine Arts Building moving forward.
“Last week was really good, and we got a lot of positive feedback. Like, the entire night, everyone was saying, like, this was the busiest show we've had,” Logan said. “So, I guess there's really nothing I needed to be worried about.”
