The night of comedy with Please Don’t Destroy was a lot more than polite nose exhales. It was sheer comedic insanity.

The hilarious three musketeers–John, Ben, and Martin– are Saturday Night Live writers who have taken the internet by storm. They seem to be one of the only comedy groups that is, like, actually funny without being insanely offensive. Crazy, right?

But does their virtual comedy still translate onto the stage? They been knew that the majority of their fans stan solely from their internet presence. So how does Please Don’t Destroy format their live shows to keep their digital fanbase hooked? Last Saturday night, the group took to exposing sketches that were once rejected from SNL. A perfect little mashup of virtual & in-person… especially when you throw in the twist of live audience volunteers (more on this later ;)). But is that enough?

So, to answer these clearly life-altering, mystifying questions I did the only thing I could think of-– I went to the Please Don’t Destroy show on campus. Correction… I performed at the Please Don’t Destroy show. On campus. In front of everyone my little freshman ass knew at this school. In an Oklahoma (Oklahoman??) accent.…and it was everything you could want it to be.

I was a (don’t judge) theater kid all four years of high school so I know my way around a stage, but never like this. They looked to the audience for any volunteers bold enough and before I knew what was happening my dumbass shot my hand in the air. And just like that my fate was sealed. I, Katelin Ravelo, was gonna change the face of comedy. Or at least try not to publicly embarrass myself my first month at college.

I crawled up the steps to that stage trying so hard to stop my hands from shaking. I stepped out from behind those billowing red curtains and decided to just fake confidence. Fake it till you make it. Just like riding a bike, right? Or pretending you did the reading last night in SOC 101. Orrrr losing your virginity in a Twin XL! Someone handed me a script and it was all a blur from there. Before I knew what had happened I had just performed with Real. Professional. Comedians. Like… WHAT?

All I could think of after my moment in the spotlight was, wow, that cannot be easy to do every night. No one just hands comedians a script and a mic and says, “break a leg, bestie.” They have to actually create and workshop their own material. Every fucking day. It can take years for a set to be good enough to make someone other than your mom fake a chuckle. But when you're in the business of creating social media smiles, you have minutes not years.

The task seems impossible- yet, we see it every day. There is no shortage of comedians on TikTok FYPs or Instagram feeds, but can live shows keep up with the online demand? Through the pandemic, “internet comedians” rose to popularity. Mostly because they had no choice. Set up your little ring light, or start working at Wegmans.

But now that live shows are maskless again , the influence of social media has noticeably changed the comedy format. If you want to laugh, why wait for a chance to go to a live show when you have access to free comedy videos right at your fingertips. Most comedians try to combat this by posting clips of their shows online in an attempt to reach a larger crowd. Like all those Netflix specials we keep seeing. But is that enough to keep an audience interested in your content?

Please Don’t Destroy can be seen as an example of how to find success in ~both~ avenues. They post popular videos online, steal the show on SNL, and still perform engaging live shows. Finding a way to utilize the internet to grow their fanbase while simultaneously performing unseen content live takes the best of both worlds, proving that the two mediums for entertainment aren’t mutually exclusive. Slay University Union for bringing us a shining example of integrated comedy content, fr.

My only critique? Bring back that cute girl w the glasses ;)

Please Don't Destroy…the Comedy Industry