U. groups plan a 'def' Winterfest

The highlight of the weekend event before finals will be a performance by the Def Comedy Jam troupe. The highlight of the weekend event before finals will be a performance by the Def Comedy Jam troupe.by Jeffrey JosephThe highlight of the weekend event before finals will be a performance by the Def Comedy Jam troupe.by Jeffrey JosephThe Daily Pennsylvanian The event -- which organizers are billing as "Penn's biggest and final comedy event of the century" -- will take place December 3 at the Annenberg Center's Zellerbach Theatre as a part of the University's third annual Winterfest weekend, which has never before lured to campus such a notable performance group. Other events tentatively planned for Winterfest include activities on Locust Walk, a community service day and a charity benefit program put on by a consortium of student performing arts groups, according to Engineering junior Theo LeCompte, co-chairperson of the Tangible Change Committee, one of the groups organizing the weekend. Def Comedy Jam, a comedy troupe formed in 1992 by music producer Russell Simmons, had a weekly program on HBO for several years and now tours the country doing live performances. The group features minority stand-up performers and helped start the careers of famous comedians like Martin Lawrence and Chris Rock. The December performance will feature comedians Talent and Dominique, and will be hosted by Joe Clair, the original host of Def Comedy Jam on HBO who now appears on Black Entertainment Television's Rap City, according to SPEC-TRUM Co-Director Shamika Lee, a College sophomore. Lee noted that the program will include more than just stand-up comedy, with interactive audience activities and prizes and music presented by well-known DJ Kid Capri, who has worked with hip-hop artists such as Puff Daddy, the Notorious B.I.G. and Busta Rhymes. "It's not just a comedy show," Lee said, adding, however, that the group is so funny, "you'll laugh until your side hurts." Lee noted that SPEC-TRUM hopes the program and its famous performance group will provide students with an opportunity to laugh and have some fun before finals begin in mid-December. "We're extremely excited," she said. "A lot of times student groups don't get to do something on this level." LeCompte said Tangible Change was similarly thrilled to have such a well-known and "hilarious" group perform as part of Winterfest. "I think it's great that SPEC-TRUM was able to do such a high-profile event" outside of the spring Penn Relays concert, for which the student group usually schedules a major musical act, he said. "We're very excited to be a part of it." Tickets for Def Comedy Jam will go on sale Monday on Locust Walk and at the Annenberg Center box office. They will be offered to Penn students at $8 per ticket, organizers said. After two weeks of sales on Penn's campus, any remaining tickets will be sold to students at other Philadelphia colleges. The UA last week voted to provide $2,000 in funding for the program. LeCompte declined to say how much money Tangible Change is providing as a sponsor, though he did say that it was more than any of the other three sponsors is contributing toward paying the cost of the event.