Blue Pencil Comedy Women’s Show
< < Back to blue-pencil-comedy-womens-showBlue Pencil Comedy held a very special show Saturday in Baker center that was very different than their usual shows. Their shows typically show off stand-up comedians but this showed off eleven women comedians without any of their male counterparts.
Blue Pencil Comedy president Emily Pyle wants to create a tradition and have shows like this once a semester.
“This is the first time we did a women’s only open mike for stand-up,” said Pyle.
It was important for both Pyle and Chrissy Grieshop, the Vice President of Blue Pencil Comedy, to show that women are just as funny as men.
“Comedy is a boys club and I think establishing a space where women can safely do stand-up on a stage and not worry about having a man before her and a man after her ready to say something misogynistic or just something outright aggressive is something very important,” said Grieshop.
Pyle and Grieshop are both seniors at Ohio University and are determined to create a safe environment for any person who wants to try stand-up.
This stance means a lot for many other members of Blue Pencil Comedy including Delaney Murray, a sophomore journalism student at Ohio University. Murray has been doing stand-up for over a year now and the example being put forth by the leaders of Blue Pencil Comedy help give her the courage to perform nearly every week.
“Women are told they can’t be funny, they’re told they can’t be taken seriously and this gives them a space they can be,” said Murray.
Some people have criticized having shows that feature only women comedians, and for those people, Blue Pencil Comedy only has one thing to say.
“Don’t come to the show, that’s not your problem, I’m sorry it exists for you but don’t come,” said Grieshop.
They don’t have time to deal with haters when one of the main goals of the show is to give women the courage to try stand-up in a safe environment.
Two new women comedians performed for the first time ever at this show and if it had never existed, they may have never given stand-up a try.
While Pyle hopes to have another open mike featuring women comedians next semester, there will also be a women’s show during mom’s weekend. That show will feature women from all the comedy organizations on campus and will include not only stand-up but sketches and videos as well.
Donations will be collected at the show and be sent to “My Sister’s Place”, a domestic violence agency in Athens, Ohio.
Blue Pencil Comedy won’t have any shows over winter break but will return January 20th. Their shows are every Saturday in Baker Center starting at 8:00 pm.