Founded in 1999, Comedy Wars has been making people whoop with laughter at MU for 20 years. Every Wednesday at 9:30 p.m., one can find the comedy troupe in the Bengal Lair of Memorial Student Union next to Starbucks. Comedy Wars consists of five members, all of which attend MU.
Going to a Comedy Wars performance, you will find the Lair filled with people enjoying the hilarious jokes and a lot of innuendos. The cast performs several different skits and games. Almost all of these acts use audience suggestions to lead the improvised scene. Some fan favorites are Sex With Me, Tinder, Four Square and 185. The cast all love to perform and love the impact the team has been in their lives. Senior Brandon Steele relishes in the laughter and the great atmosphere he is able to create.
“Making people laugh is fun,” Steele said. “It’s probably the easy answer and the cheesy answer but it’s satisfying. You know, I can make it not cheesy and sentimental by being like ‘I feel power.’ I hear people laugh and I think, ‘you like me at least a little bit.’”
It’s easy to be intimidated by the stage and audience. When sophomore Emma Ross first tried out for Comedy Wars, she felt like she wasn’t good enough to be on the stage. However, she took that leap and now loves the work she is doing. The club helped Ross discover more about herself and find the joy in performing.
“I thought they were funny,” Ross said. “I kind of thought I maybe wanted to do it but I thought I couldn’t, I wouldn’t be funny enough, wouldn’t be good enough on stage. But my friend wanted to try out and I went with him under the guise of moral support and when I got there, I decided what the hell I’m just going to try for it.”
Comedy Wars is an audition-based team. To become a member, they have a practice team set up for auditions. If a person passes, they can officially join Comedy Wars.
“We hold auditions every October,” Steele said. “We pick a practice team based off that and then at any time we can cut the practice team. Then if you make it all the way to the end and we think you’re ready, then you make the team.”
The cast members have been through many good moments together. In their time at MU, their friendship has bonded and they’ve created a lot of memories with each other and the many audiences they’ve seen. Sophomore Joseph Magee recalls his favorite memory during a show with his mother when he was hosting 185, a game where the cast gets audience input to direct jokes about things that normally wouldn’t walk into a bar.
“Nobody knew my mom and my sister were here except for me and my mom and my sister,” Magee said. “So someone from the audience just says ‘Your mom!’ as a joke. [Another cast member] was like, ‘Hey, she’s perfectly capable,’ and I’m like, ‘Yeah she is! Isn’t that right mom?’ My mom put up a fist in the air like hell yeah!”
Comedy Wars is a special place for those wanting to bring a smile to someone’s face. With the abundance of innuendos and the improvised skits, anyone can get a good laugh out of its shows. It’s a place people have been able to find new friends and develop some skills. For those interested in joining, they have a Facebook and Twitter you can contact and get more information.
_Edited by Sophie Stephens | sstephens@themaneater.com_
