There’s no pronounced shortage of comedy on Duke’s campus. Duke University Improv holds live shows throughout the semester, Department Of publishes its satirical pieces monthly and the Chronicle even has its humorous Monday Monday column which runs biweekly. Add this to the innumerable fledgling comedic projects that sprout up throughout the year (often via Facebook), and one is left wondering if there’s any room for another joke to be made.
Fear not, wonderer of the funny: niche comedy spots are still left to be filled, and one group attempting to fill them is Inside Joke. Branded as “Saturday Night Live”-esque by outsiders and insiders alike, Inside Joke is Duke’s most prominent (and only) sketch comedy troupe. Founded in 2000, the group has made itself stand out on campus by writing and performing original content live in addition to producing short video sketches.
As a result of the conventions of sketch comedy, Inside Joke is endowed with the power of both the script and the stage–a marriage that other comedic outlets on Duke’s campus don’t necessarily benefit from. Peyton Dilweg, a junior and co-president of Inside Joke, expressed this notion as a characteristic of the troupe that allows them to distinguish themselves against the rest of Duke’s comedic sphere.
“I think the biggest thing is mostly that it’s scripted and that it’s live. Department Of is writing, they do writing like we do, but it’s not a performance. And then with DUI, it is a performance, but it’s improv, so we kind of combine all the greatest elements of comedy,” she said.
Trying to blend all of those elements of comedy together, however, can be a taxing labor of creation. Improvisational groups have the expectation that their show may or may not have jokes that work in the moment and written publications don’t have to worry about the theatrical aspects of comedic performance. But sketch comedy bears the weight of sharpened jokes, rehearsed movements and near-perfect execution–a fact that Dilweg doesn’t automatically see as a hindrance.
“There’s something special about feeding off the audience and feeling out a certain comedic moment,” she said.
Indeed, Inside Joke feeds off of the energy from its audience, as evidenced by its show on Sunday. From asking the audience to “get on their feet” and “make some noise” at the beginning of the show to incorporating upbeat, contemporary music into transitions between skits, Inside Joke ensures that their spectators are constantly engaged.
The show doubled as Inside Joke’s last performance of the semester and a showcase of the group’s newest members–aptly titled “Milk That Cow: Unpasteurized Newbies.” While there has been criticism of selective groups on Duke’s campus for their exclusivity or lack of diversity, the sketch comedy troupe’s newest batch of members is relatively diverse–a fact that Lee Evans, a freshman and newcomer to Inside Joke, pointed out as overwhelmingly advantageous to the group.
“I think we [Inside Joke] have a really diverse freshman class, just in terms of life backgrounds and perspectives, and these all contribute to different styles of humor that are all funny,” he said.
Evans, who cites Dave Chappelle and Robin Williams amongst his comedic influences, spoke on the inclusiveness of Inside Joke as well as its encouragement of authenticity.
“One thing I really like about Inside Joke is that people just expect you to be yourself,” he said. “You don’t have to be this hyperbolized, super-funny version of yourself or come up with something funny every time you come in [to a meeting].”
All of the newcomers seemed to fit into Inside Joke’s existing dynamic like missing jigsaw pieces, a testament to the effectiveness of the audition process. The show didn’t include any video sketches and was instead an entirely live performance–a seemingly daunting task, but one that the freshmen pulled off with ease. Weaving between skits about Michelle Obama’s much-desired presidency, pilot Chesley Sullenberger attempting to land a plane in a swimming pool and a dating app made by the NSA, the newbies were a forceful presence throughout.
Hard to deny is the absurdity and wackiness that Inside Joke brings to the stage, which Dilweg believes is the group’s principal identifier. While this aspect of the comedy may make Inside Joke a little less accessible to certain show-goers, it’s an ostentatious brand that provides a degree of charm and appeal to those who appreciate it.
“There’s something about people who are unapologetically weird that you just feel comfortable being weird around them,” Evans said. “I think that’s what it’s all about. Just letting your weird side out.”
As for what to expect from Inside Joke next semester? Dilweg’s reply was simple: “More absurdity.”
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