Fest Spotlight On kevINda!

Maybe you are sitting at your computer and scratching your head while thinking "I see funny stuff, but do you have a group that would describe themselves as a 'smart mix of racially-charged political satire'? Bet you don't have that dccomedyfest! Do ya? Huh? Well do ya? Maybe I'm not making myself clear here dccomedyfest I want an answer. I wish you would pay attention when I ask questions, it hurts my feelings....blah, blah, blah". Well, if you are thinking that, you'd be wrong. Very wrong.

Let dccomedyfest provide you with your second chance to meet kevINda in DC. Kevin Douglas and Inda Craig-Galvan make up a duo like none other you will see performing anywhere. Hailing from Chicago, they combine Second City training, years of performing experience, and just plain brilliance into an act that will make you think, make you laugh, make you wonder if they can really say that, surprise you, and then make you laugh again even harder. While that description may seem as complex as putting together the EFFEKTIV workspace series (a fine workspace series if ever there were a fine workspace series) from IKEA, it boils down to one simple fact. They will make you laugh hard.

Inda was nice enough to send us some answers to our questions (more than a few were about kevINda). Take a look and get to know this returning dccomedyfest favorite. We loved them so much we had to have them back.

dccf: How did you and Kevin come up with idea to do kevINda?

Inda: Kevin held one of my kids hostage. At this point you say, "Inda, you have kids? How is that possible? You look so young and fit." But we digress. Kevin and I met while attending a class at The Second City Training Center. We did a student show together a while later, then both got cast as part of an "outreach and diversity" ensemble there. Eventually I got tired of Kevin saying, "We should write a show together," and we just did it. His name was Arthur back then. kevINda is much catchier than arthurnda. And the letters don't match up in the middle. Thanks for being a team player, Art.

dccf: kevINda has performed in a lot of interesting places recently, what has been the most interesting place you have gotten to perform?

Inda: If by "most interesting" you mean "scary-bad idea," then I'd have to say a mid-week, afternoon, outdoor show in the middle of downtown Chicago where families with little kids gathered to hear us say things like "tell him you got crabs" and "fuck Spike Lee" and, my personal favorite, "what's that pussy scent?". It started out as a well-intentioned effort by the Chicago Comedy Association. Actually seeing the acts you book before they perform might take that idea a little further.

dccf: How do you and Kevin describe the show to your friends and families?

Inda: It usually starts off with, "Me and my writing partner...." It sounds so legit. Writing partner. Ha!

dccf: Where do you and Kevin most often look for inspiration for your sketches?

Inda: The things that piss us off usually end up providing the most laughs for our audiences. Kevin and I will complain to each other about the absurdity of FEMA's response to Katrina, or about the ridiculousness of a furniture store running radio ads for a Dr. King Day sale (because the father of the civil rights movement was all about free financing and delivery of a living room sectional), or the not-too subtle similarities between the Curious George children's book and the African slave/middle passage history. One of us will complain for so long that the other one will say, "Just write a fucking sketch about it, will ya? Stop telling me about it or I quit." Neither of us is ready to go solo.

dccf: What has been the most surprising thing you and Kevin have discovered since you started performing together as kevINda?

Inda: You know, that line from Shoeless Joe (the novel) and Field of Dreams (the film)-- if you build it, they will come -- that shit is true. Once we started focusing on our own work and putting up a good product, opportunities came flooding in. Windows and doors are constantly opening. Letting go of that negative stuff and getting to work on something that we believe in allowed us to do all sorts of stuff that we hadn't expected. Not to sound all self-helpy, but once you get busy doing what you love and you stop waiting for "them" to put you on/hire you/cast you/fix your life for you, stuff just starts to happen. That's been the biggest surprise. Nope. I take that back. Kevin's not gay. That was it.

dccf: How do your friends and families describe the show to their friends and families?

Inda: Our friend (and Def Poet) Kevin Covall said "you wonder if you should laugh at it. It's okay to laugh." Or something like that.

dccf: What is the most interesting review you have received from an audience member after a performance?

Inda: One time...(reminiscing music here) a Chicago Tribune reviewer said, "...most sketch comedy groups are white..." as part of a much longer sentence, but that one portion got picked up by another local paper as if that were the entirety of the review.

dccf: kevINda rocked the dccomedyfest last year with some awesome sketches, what can our audiences expect to see in 2006?

Inda: More nudity, more penetration...oh, you meant in our show?! Got it. Well, definitely more angry colored folks dissing Bush, more social satire aimed at putting down Bush, and maybe even some Bush-bashing! And a surprise visit from Osama. Kevin,was I supposed to keep that a secret? See, you should have never made me the contact person for the group.

dccf: Anything that we should make sure our 2006 dccomedyfest audiences know before coming to check out kevINda?

Inda: The government WILL put you on a list for being there. kevINda out!!!!

Even if you are not a government agency, make sure to put kevINda on your list. You won't regret it. dccomedyfest out!