Where was the Mischief?

LATE original due date: Wed, July 18

It seems whenever attending events at small venues I have a tendency to under value the performer. Always hoping for the best yet not expecting too much out of them. And to my liking more often than not they exceed my expectations. I came in with the same attitude for the show at the Etcetera Theatre (especially after hearing this show was an all female comedy group).  The Boom Jennies comedy show oddly titled Mischief was made up of three female comedians, three chairs and few props brought on and off stage. Compiled of five to eight different skits the Boom Jennies covered a variety of topics i.e. boyfriend issues, Internet dating, drama between friends, all topics you’d most likely discuss with your closest gal pals.  This was the theme behind the entire show, a somewhat relatable group of women let us into their world for an hr to talk about what bothers them most in their lives, and giving it a sarcastic spin. It was quite enjoyable listening to them pick apart their BFF’s Facebook page. Why? Because we’ve all done it. Being able to connect to your audience and have them say “OMG! That’s totally true!” brings automatic laughs. But what happens when it comes at your own expense, or the expense of your own gender. In the comedy world what helps a women succeed is based on a few factors; their beauty, wit, and the ability not to take things personal. Sadly that’s just how the game works, I mean a male comedian could be handsome but it’s not necessary for them to succeed, a women needs that to jump start her career or she could get looked past. Most women have been able to take this gender gap and work with it, making sketches out of it, mocking the importance of beauty in our look obsessed culture. They poke fun at themselves to bring these topics to the forefront of people’s minds. As mentioned earlier, the Boom Jennies took stereotypical girl problems and highlighted certain aspects of them with sarcasm, all I felt for a cheap laugh. I was left with nothing to think about except for the pettiness between women. I wish there could have been more of a wide range of subjects besides how women tend to worry about the most trivial things. Maybe I’m being a little too harsh but they didn’t have the most rocking show.