Kiss Punch Poem

It is always a thrill to be back in Boston. I grew up here, learned how to do improv here, committed my first few felonies here, etc. Since I started doing improv back in IB's humble old Inman square digs, improv and comedy in Boston and around the country has exploded, and this festival is a testament to that explosion.

I'm so excited for this year's Boston Comedy Arts Festival. The amount of great acts is ridiculous. I'm also happy to have the Harold Night All-Stars performing on Wednesday night at 8:30pm, as part of ImprovBoston's 30th Anniversary Celebration. Our cast is psyched to be part of such a great night celebrating some of the best shows ImprovBoston has had over the years.

"Yes, I’m in two all-female improv teams." — Rachel Klein

In fact, the other day I suddenly realized that, at this particular moment, I'm only in all-female improv teams. One of them is all-female on purpose, one is all-female by accident (a bunch of dudes used to be in it, but they moved, or took a hiatus, or, you know, were run out of girl town—just kidding, we love boys!). The secret, though, is that both teams, the on-purpose and the by-accident, are great not because they’re full of ladies, but because the ladies on the teams have complementary strengths, similar outlooks and goals for the work of the team, and get along well as people.

The hardest part about being a festival producer is that I hardly get to see any shows during the actual festival. As a comedy nerd, that just sucks. But this year I’m hoping to sneak into a handful before the curtain comes down on Sunday...