Cardinal Spirits is once again partnering with the Limestone Comedy Festival for their upcoming charity event High Proof Laughs at 6 p.m. March 30 at the Cardinal Spirits distillery in downtown Bloomington. This next show, which is selling tickets for $10, will highlight local comedians and mark the 24th edition of the High Proof Laughs event.
Starting with the first show in 2017, this 21 and older event is typically held three times a year. It stems from the shared effort of Cardinal Spirits and the Limestone Comedy Festival to support charities in Indiana. The proceeds from tickets are donated to local nonprofits, though the exact charities vary from event to event. Profits from this upcoming comedy show will benefit New Hope For Families.
Based in Bloomington, New Hope for Families operates a shelter that provides support to families in need in Monroe County. The organization, founded in 2011, provides both housing and childcare for those who need it, as well as helping families find a safe and stable place of residence.
Every High Proof Laughs event features a new lineup of comedians. This next show will see Ethan Hamilton, Minka Wiltz and Simon Mayer opening the event and comedian Gwen Sunkel as the headliner.
Originally from Atlanta, Minka Wiltz only recently added comedy to her list of performing skills after participating in an open mic at The Comedy Attic in November 2024. Wiltz is also a trained opera singer, has written scripts, does voice over work and is currently involved with Pillar Arts, formerly the Arts Alliance of Greater Bloomington.
Since her stand up debut, Wiltz has participated in a few other comedy events around Bloomington. Wiltz most commonly frequents the open mic nights that The Comedy Attic.
For the upcoming High Proof Laughs comedy show, Wiltz said she was still trying to figure out what type of preparation method works best for her. Currently this involves a lot of talking to herself, like a “crazy woman” as she referred to herself. It also means writing down any and all material she can think of in order to build up her routine. It’s this constant practice and refinement that Wiltz hopes yield good results at the High Proof Laughs event.
As to what attendees can expect from Wiltz’s set, her jokes will primarily center around her life experiences, such as what it’s like for Wiltz to be a Black woman from Atlanta moving to Bloomington, where she’s encountered so many different viewpoints.
“I ultimately want people to know that we're all the same, so we need to work on figuring out how we're going to have honest conversations that aren't intentionally hurtful to one another,” Wiltz said. "You know, the through line is love. And I know it's corny, but that's the one thing that holds up in my life.”
Headliner Gwen Sunkel will also be drawing from her own life during her set. The comedian from Indianapolis has been performing comedy for about 10 years. She has performed several times at the Helium Comedy Club, a contemporary entertainment venue in downtown Indianapolis, where she won first place in the Indianapolis' Funniest Person Competition in 2024.
A nurse by trade, Sunkel had to pause on her performing career while primarily working the night shift. When she moved to the nursing day shift, more time opened up for her to get back into performing. Sunkel chose stand up comedy because it allowed her to be more in control of her schedule while still adding a more creative element to her life.
“Comedy kind of seemed like a way to kind of do it, you know, more on my own terms,” Sunkel said. “Just because you know you're not, like, letting down a choir or the cast of a play, if you’re, like, ‘I don't want to go do it tonight.’”
As a comedian, Sunkel describes her comedy as misdirection humor with many of her jokes being very observational with unexpected endings. Primarily, Sunkel said she just wants to ensure the audience had a great time while also learning a bit about her and her life as a queer woman in Indiana. The comedian also wants to assure attendees that, unlike other comedians, she wouldn’t be doing much crowd work, if she does any at all.
“If somebody's like, ‘I'm not one of those people who wants to interact with the person on stage,’ then I'm the comedian for you,” Sunkel said. “Because, like, I worked really hard to write this material and that's what I want to do.”
Tickets for High Proof Laughs are still currently available. They can be found on Cardinal Spirits’ website or bought directly through the events Tock web page.
