Comedy for President

Each year, Student Valley Productions here at UMass Amherst throws the largest, completely student-run comedy festival in the country, and the largest period in New England. For seven months, SVP has been planning this year's Comedy Jam to be the biggest in history, and tonight the 10th Annual Comedy Jam comes your way for FREE. That's right, comedy groups from around the country are coming here to UMass in completely free performances open to the public. This year's promotional theme has been "COMEDY FOR PRESIDENT." Unfortunately, some of our biggest publicity stunts inolving the theme had to be canceled, but the campus seems to be taking to the idea nonetheless. With over 5,000 flyers to post all over campus, the idea is to make every student at least somewhat aware of the Comedy Jam. And tonight, all that hard work (hopefully) pays off. The lineup of performers, although there are few who have never at any point been UMass Amherst studets, is really incredible:

• BetaSEANS (The Seans Redux!) - amherst, MA
• Stranger Than Fiction - portsmouth, NH
• Don't Make a Scene - amherst, MA
• I.W.A. - amherst, MA
• Killebrew (from the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre!) - new york, NY
• Replaced by Robots - chicago, IL
• Mission: IMPROVable, Inc. (the famed touring co. founded at UMass!) - los angeles, CA
• Sketch-22 - amherst, MA
• Hammerkatz NYU (favorites from last year return with all-new material!) - new york, NY
• Acoustic Love - amherst, MA
• Be Frank - chicago, IL
• Mission: IMPROVable (15-year reunion with lots of old cast members!) - amherst, MA
• The Angry Northeast - chicago, IL
• Something Equally Lame (Casual Sketch reunion!) - chicago, IL
• Team Submarine (the acclaimed fast-rising 2-man sketch group!) - chicago, IL
• Improv Asylum - boston, MA
• Misty & Matt Lang - chicago, IL
• Dirty Water (improv set in a South Boston pub!) - chicago, IL

The 10th Annual Comedy Jam is TONIGHT & TOMORROW, April 7th & 8th, in BARTLETT 65 at 7:00 PM each night. It's totally free, so you can come grab a program, and then come and go as you please throughout.