This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Northwestern chapter.
Name: Mary Gulino
Year: Sophomore
Hometown: Chatham, New Jersey
Major: Radio/TV/Film, Dance minor
Check out our Campus Celeb as she performs in the Comedy Forum February Showcase this Saturday, February 4th at 9 pm in Louis Hall Room 119.
When did you become involved with Comedy Forum?
My friend and fellow comic Alec Khan invited me to join Comedy Forum in early fall of my freshman year. He and I were living in the same hall of NMQ (JEALOUS?!?), and we had met coincidentally at an improv workshop before we even knew we were neighbors. So we were just sitting in the lounge, shooting the shit, and half an hour into the conversation, I guess he decided I was witty (or depressed) enough that I would be a good fit for Comedy Forum. It’s a casual workshop setting, so there’s no pressure to come prepared with a set of brilliant material or anything. For the first few times, I just sat and watched and got a feel for the environment.
When did you first have people tell you were funny?
I never really thought of myself as funny when I was a little kid; that was my dad’s thing and my brother’s thing. But I guess I looked up to them so much-and still do- that I placed a really high value on humor.
Most of my time in middle school and high school was spent at dance, and that kind of environment is a really great chance to stick out in a funny way, if that’s what you’re in to. When the type-A girls would be trying to suck up to the director or something, I would do stupid shit in the back of the room to make people laugh. It wasn’t until my senior year that my director realized I was the source.
The first time I ever stood in front of a huge crowd of people to get laughs was the summer before my senior year of high school, when I did a creative writing program at Kenyon College. I wrote a short piece about my shitty eyesight called “I Can’t See the ‘E’ on the E Chart.” It was my first ever “Holy shit, I get so much selfish, undeserved satisfaction when strangers laugh at my words” moment. But just for the record, let’s just say my choice subject matter has evolved since then.
What attracted you to join comedy forum?
Obviously, Alec invited me to try it out. I kept coming back, though, because all of the people seemed so cool and interesting– the kind of students who you fantasize about sitting on the couches at Norris and laughing really loud with so that bystanders know you’re happy with your life. Also, I loved the structure of the group. Everyone writes individually, hones their own style, and then the group gives useful and supportive criticism.
And how’s this for a fairy tale: I now get to laugh loudly at Norris with those very same cool kids. (But not on the couches, ’cause I’m not a Theatre major.)
What’s your favorite part of being involved in comedy forum?
I’ve met some really terrific and talented people through the group. So that part is indispensible. But I also really love how this group functions as a springboard by giving me the confidence to do mics and network with comics in New York, New Jersey, and Chicagoland.
What have you learned in comedy forum?
I think I’ve learned a bit about how to dissect little things within jokes– syntax, word choice, timing, knowing the audience. It’s really similar to doing any form of creative writing, but the execution is obviously different because of the mode in which it’s being received. It’s a cool thing to go through the practice of beating a joke to death in my mind, because, even if I haven’t found it funny in, say, a year, it’s still calculated enough that it will be funny to a new listener.
What does comedy forum entail?
There’s a lot that goes into making a showcase, but we do one every month, and no one is allowed to recycle material. In that sense, the group has inspired me to write on a regular basis. Another great aspect of the showcases is that we film them, so we can go back after stage jitters have subsided and (semi)objectively critique our own work. It’s always really interesting when you thought something didn’t go over well and then the video proves that it did, or vice versa.
What’s your favorite joke?
I’m going to assume you mean a joke that I’ve heard from someone else. I laugh at all kinds of stuff. I really love good one-liners, but honestly, I’m able to appreciate everything. I’m a generous laugher, so my comic friends keep me around for that.
What else are you involved in on campus or off?
I’m in Delta Zeta, and I’m a cast member of the dance group Steam Heat. I also crew for NSTV and various student film sets throughout the year. Outside of NU stuff, I practice yoga a lot, and I plan on getting my certification to teach yoga in the next few years.
How does being a “funny girl” affect you?
As much as I’d like to say that we’re all people and being a girl doesn’t matter and blahblahblah, I’ve tried to develop some self-awareness about what informs my humor, and inevitably I think my gender is a part of it. One thing I like about being a 20 year-old female is that I’m given a chance to stand out among line-ups of gross 30 year-old white guys who bitch about not getting laid (in the real world, not NU, obviously).
But there’s also an initial hurdle I have to jump because when I get on stage, I guess I don’t appear capable of knowing what funny is. And even if I jump that hurdle and win the audience over, one thing I still have to deal with is the phrase, “Hey, you’re really funny, for a girl.” It’s frustrating, because it usually comes from people who suck in general and just crave human interaction. They’re surprised that a girl could make them laugh, and I’m surprised that they think they’re giving me a compliment. Like they want me to reveal that I secretly hide a male ghost writer in my bra or something. HELL NAH.