Kendra Cunningham performed at last year's Women in Comedy Festival, and then found herself auditioning in Montreal. Now she's answered my questions about finding representation and how things have changed for her in the past year—and how they've stayed the same.
WICF: How did you get involved with Just For Laughs/New Faces Unrepresented?
KENDRA: I met Jeff Singer at the Women in Comedy Festival and got a Montreal audition from there. It ended up Colleen McGarr was also scouting for Montreal and I knew her from the Boston Comedy Festival so they conference called me to let me know about the New Faces Unrepresented opportunity.
WICF: What has being in the show meant to or done for your career?
KENDRA: I began working with my manager, Abbey MacDonald from New Wave Entertainment,
which was founded by Barry Katz, also from Massachusetts. Beyond that I wouldn’t say too much has changed. I’m still writing all the time, performing as much as possible, shooting shorts, and drinking too much
whenever I can.
which was founded by Barry Katz, also from Massachusetts. Beyond that I wouldn’t say too much has changed. I’m still writing all the time, performing as much as possible, shooting shorts, and drinking too much
whenever I can.
WICF: How have things changed for you in the past year?
KENDRA: Besides getting entangled in the whole Matt Dillon /Benicio del Toro love triangle? When I could get dressed and out of the house I shot shorts with Vicky Kuperman, also a Boston native. "Lonelygirl48" won two festivals and Casual Sex was screened in two other film festivals. Our latest one, Snake Eye PI, is submitted to six festivals right now. We’ve been working on a script for a feature and I’ve been working on two pilot ideas and of course, writing my blog, "Blonde Logic" (http://www.blondelogicblog.com/), and "The Beauty and the Beast" (http://thecomedypoint.com/WICF: Were you surprised to hear from Jeff Singer?
KENDRA: I was wicked surprised. I was more surprised at how down to earth, approachable and supportive he is. It’s hard to find industry people like him so I was really lucky.
WICF: How did you get started in comedy?
KENDRA: I took a comedy writing class at Gotham Writers workshop and did a three-minute set as part of the graduation process. I was working full-time in the hedge fund industry so I did bringer shows once every six months or so for about five years. I never went to open mics and I basically did the same jokes for a long time. I left the hedge fund business about four and a half years ago to get my Masters in Forensic Psychology and I’ve been performing every week since then.
WICF: What advice do you have for working comics and for comics who are just starting out?
KENDRA: Have something else going on, like bank robbing. I can’t tell you how much I regret not trying my hand at drug dealing or stripping. If I didn’t have to worry about money, I’d be perfectly happy with my state of affairs. But it’s tough to make money in comedy. Plus, it’s hard to feel funny when you think you have a cavity, you need to get your roots done, and all your underwear is dirty.
WICF: You have multiple blogs on your site—do you think writing is something every comic should do? What about writing they don't publish or make public?
KENDRA: All comics are different. I know some comics who never write out jokes, just premises and then improvise from there. I have to have all my material written. I’ll improvise around written stuff but if I don’t have my writing done, I’m convinced I will be exposed as a fraud.
WICF: What was your experience at WICF 2011 like?
KENDRA: I always love coming back to Boston to perform. Bostonians have a huge appreciation for comedy and a specific sense of humor that you don’t find everywhere.
The festival itself was so fun. They shows were well produced and there were seminars and round tables to attend during the day.
Kendra Cunningham will perform at this year's Women in Comedy Festival on Saturday, March 24 at 8 PM in the show "Comedy Studio Stand-Up Comedy Showcase, Hosted by Kate Ghiloni."
You can find out more about Kendra at her website, www.kendracunningham.com, follow her on Twitter and like her on Facebook. She writes at "Blonde Logic" (www.blondelogicblog.com) and "The Beauty and the Beast" (http://thecomedypoint.com/
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