On Friday Apr. 12 at 6:00 p.m., Varsity Nordic will begin their 24-hour performance. This is an annual fundraising event, and this year’s profits will be donated to the Lillie Rice Centre. This organization aims at providing support and employment to people with developmental disabilities. The event will take place on the admitted students’ day that will help introduce newcomers to some fun clubs at Whitman.

During the event, the audience will receive a menu with tasks and prices listed on it.

“It’s usually $1 a game if you want to see a silly short form game. It’s $5 for something a little longer. You can also pay $10 to the people to jump into a fountain or do other things. For example, last year I got my ear pierced on stage,” Matt Schetina ’19 said about the concept of the fundraiser.

As a group, Varsity Nordic is a unique student club. They are eight people passionate about comedy and improvisation. The club does not have presidents, vice presidents or other officer positions. The tasks, such as promotion of events or booking of spaces, are distributed evenly between all the members.

“We are performing for 24 hours, but not everybody is in for 24 hours. We are doing short form games. The parameters are that someone is always filibustering, or someone is always performing, especially in the wee hours of the morning when some people are low-energy, and some are very high-energy,” said Ashlyn Quintus ’19.

Practices happen three times per week, but the fact that the members are also close friends outside of the space helps tremendously with their on-stage group chemistry and collaboration.  

“Improv has always been an amazing outlet where you can make anything you want happen. And all it takes is people and chairs. It’s a very freeing place to be,” said Ruby Daniel ’20.

Varsity Nordic holds auditions each year for all students who wish to join. Some of the group members don’t have any previous experience with comedy improvisation, and their more experienced partners are responsible for providing some guidance.

“I went to the audition on a whim and was lucky enough to get in, and that’s when I started doing it. I haven’t really looked back since. There’s definitely a culture of learning and growth because a lot of people who are on it have never done improv before, which is great, and we always like that because they bring a fresh, organic spirit,” said Schetina.

Improvising on stage is a challenging task, yet Varsity Nordic has garnered a reputation on campus as a collective of talented and hilarious individuals who mean serious comedy. Actors have their own difficulties related to improvisation; however, once they are onstage together, their strength as an ensemble is undeniable.

“It really challenges me because I am a planner. I like to know what is going to happen and when, but you can’t in improv. That is super scary for me but also really exciting! Especially when we do shows that feeling never loses its thrill,” said Daniel about her personal challenges.

The show is free and students can drop in and out whenever they would please. Whether you would like to enjoy 30 minutes of comedy, or stay up all night with the performers, do not miss out on this chance to laugh for a good cause.