The infamous "Ladies' Man" of Saturday Night Live fame will be hosting this year's Comedy Festival on the Monday before Spring Fling.
Tim Meadows, who was a cast member on the hit NBC show for 10 seasons, will participate in skits with student performers in addition to his hosting duties on April 11.
"Tim Meadows ... is a pure sketch comic," said College junior Jason Vitullo, who is co-producing the show. "He was one of my favorite comedians growing up. I'm definitely very excited."
College senior and Social Planning and Events Committee Executive Board President Darryl Wooten agreed.
"Tim Meadows was one of the highest choices we had," he said. "I think it will be a draw. People will definitely recognize him."
This year's is the seventh annual Intercollegiate Comedy Festival, an event put on by SPEC and Penn's all-male comedy ensemble, Mask and Wig.
Vitullo, who is a member of the Mask and Wig band, said that this is the group's third year collaborating with SPEC on the event.
In addition to Meadows and Mask and Wig, the festival will feature performances from the University of Maryland's Sketchup, Yale's The Fifth Humor and Princeton's Triangle Club -- all of which are sketch comedy groups.
Vitullo said that the other groups were "very excited" to be working with Meadows as well.
College sophomore David Berger thinks that Meadows "is definitely a natural for [the festival]. All that Saturday Night Live experience is perfect for sketch comedy stuff."
In addition to Meadows' great success on Saturday Night Live -- his other memorable roles include impersonations ranging from Colin Powell to Busta Rhymes -- he also wrote and starred in a film version of "The Ladies' Man" and more recently appeared in the film Mean Girls with former Saturday Night Live co-star Tina Fey.
"He's really energetic. I'm sure he'll put on a great show," said Wharton and Engineering junior Alex Zolan, president of the comedy group Simply Chaos.
"I'd love to see the Ladies' Man" sketch, said College senior Ariel Schneier, a member of the all-female comedy group Bloomers.
Berger was not so sure he agreed.
"It could be funny if he incorporated some of his SNL stuff he's known for into his performance," he said. "But that could be kind of cliche if he overdoes it."
According to Wooten, Mask and Wig handled "the more creative aspects" of the festival while SPEC dealt with contacting Meadows' agents and providing the funding for his performance.
Tickets will be sold on Locust Walk from March 31 through April 10 for $8. Students can also purchase tickets on the Walk or at the door on the day of the show for $10. The festival will be held at the Zellerbach Theatre.
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