Laughing up at the glass ceiling

Audience members who came to watch Duke University Improv’s Secret Show under the Blackwell Arch two weeks ago got the usual dose of comedy they were expecting.

There were the characteristic punch lines, impersonations and witty banter between members followed by jeering and enthusiastic applause. But there were also new additions to this year’s act that the audience may not have been expecting.

Two new female members were added to DUI’s cast this year. Freshmen Jess Hendin and Julianne Kolb are the first women to join the previously all-male troupe in nearly five years.

“We took the four best people, and two of those happened to be girls,” said senior David Distenfeld, a veteran DUI member.

Fellow member Tom Blemaster, a senior, said the all-male trend is nothing more than a numbers game.

“It’s always really tough at auditions because usually we just have a lot more guys than girls,” he said. “This year it was different, there was more of an equal number of girls and guys that tried out.”

The two girls, along with freshmen Hunter Douglas and Robert Zaleski, were welcomed to DUI a month ago after a week-long audition process that turned away nearly a hundred would-be comedians.

With the arch packed to capacity, the group quickly got into their usual improv antics. From the reactions of the audience, it was clear that the new members meshed well with the old. Kolb’s impression of a chain-smoking, husband-less grandmother got the same round of rousing laughs, hoots and hoorahs, as did sophomore Kyle Glackin’s impersonation of an illegal immigrant­—a crowd favorite.

“I was the first girl any of the guys had improvised with when I joined,” she said. “At certain points, it would be very fratty. A lot of the jokes were very guyish—that got toned down when I was in the group.”

Haubold added that being one of the few girls in DUI was not without its challenges.

“Girls have to be careful to not be the sweet princess or the old hag in every scene,” she said. “It’s easy to get typecast.”

Junior Jenni Brandon too could attest to the difficulty of being one of the only funny women in a group of dominating male personalities. Brandon auditioned for DUI two years ago and made it to the top ten during callbacks before eventually being cut.

“It was a fun experience and very intimidating—those boys are very talented,” she said. “It was also intimidating because I was a girl.... Men being funny translates better than women being funny.”

Brandon said she thinks things may have turned out differently her freshman year if another girl had been on the judging panel.

“I think with these girls they might be able to get a few more in the future,” she said. “But DUI are great guys—super nice. But it’s good, I think, to have the girls.”

Regardless of the year-to-year changes in group dynamic, current members of DUI and alums said the group remains at its core the same.

“DUI is a group full of strong personalities competing for the spotlight as comedians and that won’t change whether there’s a girl or not,” Haubold said.

Audience members too said the chemistry of the group was only improved by the addition of female members.

“I think [the girls] fit in nicely. It added a new dynamic,” said freshman Ritza Calixte, who had seen one of DUI’s performances prior to the addition of the freshmen as well as the Secret Show Thursday night. “It was refreshing. I think they made a good choice with who they selected, even with the other two freshmen.”