Kat Simmons, center, with six of her students, Katie Welsh, Laurie Harden, Tracey Anderson, Eric O'Meara, Jim Campbell, Enid Bailot, Lori Bell Herring, and Pierre Herring. Not pictured is Darlene Pearson.
The first class of comedy workshop students since the coronavirus outbreak graduated Nov. 7 at the COD Casino in Minden, according to Valley comedian and instructor Kat Simmons.
The workshop takes people from introducing themselves on the first night to getting on stage to perform a five-minute stand-up comedy routine in six weeks.
"No two students have ever been the same in the 26 years I've been teaching," Simmons said.
Each student's motivation for taking the class varies as does their material.
This particular class had seven returning students along with two new ones. The class becomes its own bonded group and as the class progresses the students all help each other by offering feedback on each other's sets. The workshop is as much for the person you can't get off the mic, as it is for the ones who are terrified to get on it. Several of Simmons’ students have gone on to do comedy and are still performing. Some went on to make an announcement on a microphone without feeling like they were going to faint, either way they gained confidence.
Public speaking is feared by most people, so helping people not be as afraid is what motivates Kat along with giving them a place to try out their particular sense of humor.
For more information or to be placed on the waiting list for the next class call, 775-721-8864.
