Boris’ Kitchen’s Fall Fest was a hilarious two-night spectacle of sketch comedy. From Santa Claus to a Scissor Goblin, this event had something for everyone to laugh at. The sketches themselves varied from topical humor to utterly ridiculous concepts like the aforementioned Scissor Goblin. The show was well-directed by Perry Letourneau ’20 and Anderson Stinson III ‘21 and their assistant director Jess Cocomazzi ‘21. The members of Boris’ Kitchen were joined on stage by two different sketch comedy groups from other colleges each night. These guests included Boston University’s “Callbacks,” Emerson’s “Jimmy’s Traveling All-Stars,” Skidmore’s “Sketchies” and Tuft’s “The Institute.”
While the main attraction was Boris’ Kitchen, there were several standout sketches from some of the other performers. In particular, the groups from Emerson and Boston University had some clever sketches in their repertoire. Emerson’s group, “Jimmy’s Traveling All-Stars,” got quite a few laughs from their skit where a man and woman seemingly stuck in the 1940s flirt at a modern-day party. The troupe did a hysterical job capturing the accents and movements of the 1940s and juxtaposing it to a modern-day perspective.
Also of note was Boston University’s “Callbacks,” whose airplane sketch got people laughing before the lights went on. Despite an initial technical glitch with the lights, the troupe managed to get the audience clapping and laughing before the lights went up. When they finally got to perform their sketch, the audience laughed even harder. The sketch took place on an airplane, where the captain kept warning his passengers about his ex-wife who was on board. Although the captain and co-pilot are off stage, the true comedic effect of the sketch comes from the passengers’ reactions to the increasingly unstable captain’s accusations. Another of “The Callbacks’” sketches poked fun at the overused movie line “Sir, you better take a look at this,” in which a disgruntled sci-fi general becomes increasingly more enraged by his analyst’s inability to simply show him what’s going. The general’s increasing frustration as he runs back and forth across the stage is what makes this sketch really entertaining.
While the guest comedy groups were very entertaining, the fellows in Boris’ Kitchen had prepared quite the showcase of sketches for act two. With a total of 16 different sketches, the entire show was a tad long to sit through.
However, despite the number of sketches, there were surprisingly few bad ones. In fact, each sketch got a laugh from the audience at one point or another. The element that made these sketches so successful was the variety in writing and writers. In total, Boris’ Kitchen utilized 15 different writers, and this allowed each sketch to feel different and unique, coming from a different point of view. Each sketch was funny, but more importantly, each sketch was different than the last.
Some stand out sketches include “Demographics” by Eric Rossblum ’21 and “FUNeral” by Dane Leoniak ’20. Both these sketches make excellent use of comedic timing and awkward pauses. In Blum’s sketch, a girl is applying for a position when she is told by the secretary that she needs to be Jewish in order to fill demographics. Their interactions between the secretary and the girl are what really had the audience laughing, specifically during the long pauses when the secretary would slurp some of his noodle cup. The awkward pauses and the fact that the performer playing the secretary almost choked on his noodles made this sketch exceptionally funny.
In a similar manner, Leoniak’s sketch also made good use of comedic timing. In this sketch, a guy goes to a funeral and tries to cheer up two grieving parents by telling them a joke. While the joke itself and its punchline are funny, what really made this sketch hilarious was the drawn-out way in which the joke was told. The awkward silence as the guy flipped through the pages and the glares from the grieving parents set up the sketch for its punchline: a knock-knock joke. This sketch was a great example of excellent comedic timing and use of awkward silences.
Leoniak also had a hand in writing perhaps the funniest sketch of the Fall Fest: “Enter the Scissor Goblin.” Leoniak, along with Letourneau, are responsible for writing a sketch that features a goblin that would cut the ankles of those who use scissors irresponsibly. While “Enter the Scissor Goblin” is not the funniest sketch on its own, the titular goblin actually appears in several different sketches. A sketch can turn from being a murder mystery in one moment to having a scissor-wielding goblin on a scooter chasing everyone around the stage. The sheer ridiculousness of the Scissor Goblin makes every appearance memorable, especially when it’s unexpected. Although the sketches with the Scissor Goblin have a similar ending, the set up in each to his entrance is always different. Each of these sketches are funny on their own, but as soon as someone says the word scissors, the Scissor Goblin will undoubtedly make an appearance. By having a different set-up for each sketch involving the Scissor Goblin, Leoniak and Letourneau were able to make each of his appearances unique and avoided the joke becoming stale throughout the show.
Overall, the Fall Fest was a funny show with a variety of different but consistently hilarious sketches. Each sketch had its own unique humor thanks to the many writers involved with the show. The cast was energetic and dynamic and their excellent sense of comedic timing only added to the hilarity of their sketches. The combined 16 skits as well as the performance from other colleges made the Fall Fest very long. However, the excellent performances and well written skits kept the audience engaged throughout the performance. Boris’ Kitchen’s Fall Fest was truly a uniquely hilarious experience.
