On Jan. 18, stand-up comedian Mekki Leeper performed at Brandeis in the Spingold Theater. The event was organized by the Campus Activities Board (CAB). Leeper is known for his main roles in Amazon’s “Jury Duty” and Max’s “The Sex Lives of College Girls.” He is also currently starring in NBC’s “St. Denis Medical.” Leeper’s opening act was comedian Zoe Zakson. Zakson has been the opening act for the entirety of Leeper’s comedy tour and was previously a host and co-producer for Dynasty Typewriter’s “This u?” comedy show. Prior to the show, CAB set up tables of snacks for attendees to enjoy, including grapes, berries, pita chips, charcuterie and more. There were also mocktails available, with students being able to choose to sip on a Mango Madness, a Shirley Temple or a No-Tequila Sunrise before going inside the theater.
Zakson appeared first on stage slightly after eight p.m. She started off the show by asking the crowd if anyone’s parents were divorced, then admitted after the cheers that her parents are still married. She also talks about how she thinks her mother is closeted and that her father has an eating disorder. Zakson also talked a little bit about how her butch appearance has affected her in life, including the time that her floor advisor in college assumed that she uses they/them pronouns based on her appearance. Some of the comedian’s final stories involved her current roommates, who she believes are all objectively hot, and the time that one of them convinced her to audition for the Los Angeles Clippers spirit squad, an audition that was, surprisingly to her, successful.
Right after Zakson’s routine, she welcomed Leeper to the stage. Leeper began by talking to the audience about Brandeis. For instance, he made comments about people at Brandeis being nerdy, such as mentioning the dominance of STEM majors, and not playing any normal sports, with sports like quadball being popular. He also talked to someone in the crowd about being in a sorority at Brandeis and how weird that seems. Leeper then went on to talk about his time in school as a child. He talked about the backpacks he had, such as a Tarzan backpack and a rolling Spiderman backpack, and being one of those suit guys in school, which he defended to someone as being “business casual.” He also discussed having an unusual name in school, and how he had to get used to people saying it wrong. Leeper also talked about his family life, and what it was like to have a Moroccan mother and a conservative Christian father. Overall, he felt he had a strict household. He then talked to the audience to hear some stories about other people’s strict parents. Leeper then spoke about efforts he has taken to improve himself, such as going to the gym and dealing with trainers that do not understand his skinny body type. He also talked about some of the weird times he has had in therapy and dealing with his mental health. Leeper’s last story was about one of his worst panic attacks that led to him going to the hospital and how seeing a look-alike panicking finally made him calm down.
To see some of Zakson and Leeper’s comedy, follow them on Instagram, @zoezakson and @mekkileeper respectively. As previously mentioned, Leeper is currently starring in “St. Denis Medical,” which was recently renewed for a second season. New episodes of the current season come out every Tuesday at eight p.m. on ET and available the next day on Peacock.
