York Community High provides opportunities for everyone, whether it is via clubs, sports, or academic interests. For those whom love comedy, such an in-school activity was unavailable until two years ago, when Rachael Michaud, Graduate, came up with the idea to create a club for York’s comedians. The club has been a tremendous success, as they have been invited to the prestigious “Sketchfest”, a comedy festival in Chicago, the past three years, which have gone very well.
“We did amazing (at Sketchfest) considering we had a lot of scheduling conflicts beforehand! For such a large and busy group, it’s difficult for all of us to get together and focus on our show,” said Beth Pankau, junior.
Prior to each live skit, the group practices every Tuesday after school to prep for their performances. Some skits are done individually, others as a group; Ms. Noble, the clubs adviser, must monitor language and behavior to keep it appropriate for the intended audience.
“I don’t necessarily want to censor my students’ material; since everything is theirs, I respect their ownership. Despite that, I do like to make sure all material is school appropriate,” Noble said.
Prior to each practice and live skit, the group performs a large variety of warm-up games in order to get them in a silly, nonchalant state of mind.
“We perform warm-ups to get our emotions flowing; it relieves stress we developed during the school day. The drills get you in a goofy, outgoing persona,” Billy Wittstock, junior, said.
Regarding the performance itself, the students get to perform primarily whatever they want.
“We usually perform whatever we find funny and appealing to the viewer,” said Quinn Corocoran, sophomore.
Finally, when the curtains open and it is time to perform the skit, the feeling is exhilarating.
“It’s an indescribable feeling,” Ryan Doyle, junior, said.
“I feel more alive than ever, there is a sense of an accomplishment (when performing), and it’s an empowering feeling,” Doyle said.