There are a lot of students out there who want to start an Internet company but are lost, either because there is not enough “push” from the community to motivate them to get started or because they don’t know where to find the right people. U of T’s Web Startup Society wants to connect student entrepreneurs with people who aspire to be entrepreneurs.

In Stanford, or even in Waterloo, most students want to create their own startup once they graduate. However, over here, the startup scene is fairly disappointing. The WSS wants to change that by starting a culture in which people will once again believe that they can change the world through the Internet.

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Image from x3nomik in the blogUT Flickr Pool

Here’s what’s been going on at U of T in the last few weeks, in case you’re too lazy to read the papers:

Four St. Mike’s College students paint their faces black as part of a Jamaican Bobsled Team Halloween costume. The Black Students’ Association and UTSU are not amused.

Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall come to Varsity Stadium.

The Day of Action for a Poverty Free Ontario protest sees a smaller turnout than in previous years.

A New College student accidentally causes sprinklers to go off in the middle of the night, apparently flooding the entire 5th floor in one of the resident buildings. Hundreds of sleepy students are evacuated from their beds and probably pissed off.

Hart House has been getting, and is going to continue getting a makeover, in case you haven’t noticed.

People’s parents come to U of T for Bring Your Family to School Day, with apparently positive results. I wonder how many of these were surprise visits.

A sexy new student lounge has been built at Woodsworth College. Maybe you will be lucky and have an exam there.

In part three of blogUT’s continuing coverage of the Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival, we find ourselves once again in the cozy Theatre Passe Muraille catching the tail end of the week-long festival. The three final acts were the native Toronto duo Accidental Company, the energetic New York duo Kanellis & Armstrong (covered here), and former University of Toronto student group Statutory Jape. This evening’s performances rounded out a solid week of hilarious sketch comedy that featured groups from near (Toronto) and far (the æther that supposedly lies beyond Toronto) assembled to bring mirth to our frozen, coal-black city dwelling hearts.

In all honesty, it has been a great pleasure to cover this festival, and this author hopes sincerely that you managed to catch at least a little bit of the first-rate comedy that went on there. But enough of my sentimentality (exactly what I heard before getting shoved into a locker in Grade 8): onto the acts!

Accidental Company is a Toronto-based duo that opened the evening’s performance. They opened with a sketch featuring what could only be described as the bastard child of a children’s television show and Pee Wee Herman’s repressed memories. My favorite line came from the protagonist’s Big Book of Ideas: “Chapter 7: starving children should trick-or-treat more!” Accidental Company opened strong and maintained good chemistry throughout their sketches, despite some lulls in their otherwise impeccable energy and timing. The duo had inventive routines, and their sketches took some unexpected routes eschewing audience expectations. Favorite sketches were the autobiography of forward-to-novels writer Samuel McCloud (“Things I Never Did”) and Badjoon’s World.

Kanellis & Armstrong were in good form again. For a more in-depth look at their act, please see blogUT’s review of their Friday night show. A second review of their act revealed a previously unnoticed degree of improvisation, which was a pleasant surprise.

Statutory Jape brought the evening’s performances to a close. Their act, while solid, was by far the longest out of the three acts. It is possible that this is due not to a preponderance of content, but rather to their timing. Some of their sketches were overwrought and lacked actual punch lines to provide structure. Others had punch lines clumsily tacked on at the end of perfectly good sketches, throwing off the dynamic. My philosophy with comedy has always been that less is more (also, Shakespeare may have said that but he’s dead. Who’s plagiarizing whom now, William?!) and the same holds true for sketches. Saying more jokes with fewer words is always better [ED: more jokes, fewer words. [ED: jokes!]]. Nevertheless, I suspect that some of the timing issues are related to the fact that they were by far the largest group (at five performers) and followed two acts of duos (a configuration that helps to emphasize timing). There were some very funny sketches in this act: personal favorites were a Choose Your Own Adventure Diary of Anne Frank and Orson Welles upstaging his own death in Romeo & Juliette.

Do I hear a video mashup of Citizen Kane and Romeo + Juliette in the works? Answer: no.

To reiterate, it has been a pleasure to cover the Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival and I recommend that everybody at U of T check it out when it returns next year.  At $12 a ticket, this event exists at the exact intersection between the twin axes of price and fun. (All econometrics of fun (funometrics) courtesy of the Bank of Canada).

In the second part of blogUT’s continuing coverage of the orgy of laughter (and tears) that is the Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival, our intrepid blogUT crew ventured into the cozy embrace of the retro-chic venue Theatre Passe Muraille this Friday for a late-night 11pm lineup of three intrepid troupes: The Skinny, Kanellis & Armstrong, and U of T alumni group Skule Night. The small size of the crowd was almost certainly attributable to the lateness of the show (who, besides the cast members’ mothers, do you expect to be at a sketch comedy show at 11pm on a Friday night? Answer: pathetic bloggers), but the atmosphere was cozy and made the inevitable bouts of fourth-wall shattering audience participation more tolerable. But enough esoteric details, onto the show!

The Skinny are a three-person troupe hailing from Vancouver, and opened the show with a clever reverse strip tease. My personal favorite line was “Oh yeah, put it on! Put those clothes on slower!” If I were Ron Howard (and God willing someday I will be) I would tell those people to run with it and make the parody video I have been dreaming of since Grade 7: Nelly’s “It’s Gettin’ Colder in Here (So Put on a Parka).” Superheroes and cartoons featured prominently in their sketches, along with well executed bouts of physical comedy. Their shorter sketches sometimes fell flat: the punch line of one sketch advertising sex as a new form of exercise is that, surprise surprise, they have sex! But never fear: the LOLs kept coming. Personal favorite sketches were: (a) Superman accidentally commits murder and has to reverse the rotation of the earth (because, according to Marvel Comics in the 1970s, that’s how time travel works. Get on this, Science!) again and again, and (b) a def poetry jam between heroin-junkie William S. Burroughs and being-sad-junkie Sylvia Plath.

Kannallis & Armstrong are a New York based duo, and provided a strong follow-up to the first act. Their sketches featured prominently funny accents, physical comedy, energetic audience participation, and poop. The duo had very good comedic chemistry and timing, and very few of their sketches fell flat. Another positive aspect of their comedy was the range and depth of characters they played, even when communicating it through a blown-kiss-cùm-fellatio pantomime sketch. Personal favorites included a fecal tennis match, and two Irish women talking about dating (during the potato famine, I assumed).

Skule Night are a University of Toronto based troupe from the Faculty of Engineering and rounded out the evening’s lineup.  Their work, while good, was the least polished of the three. With the largest cast, it was difficult for them to develop characters adequately within the space allotted. Then again, developing any kind of character within the four minute time-frame that most sketches impose is a feat for anyone. With such a large cast, it was hard for many of the performers to develop chemistry, and there were several line flubs and uncontrollable fits of laughter (thanks, Jimmy Fallon for making this seem OK) that detracted from the sketches’ dynamic. There were also some very strong, promising sketches that should be further developed. Personal favorites were a movie trailer voice over artist narrating his friends’ love triangle and the Microsoft Word Swat Team.

The show was, overall, very enjoyable and is highly recommended for any armchair fan of comedy. (Also for people that like to laugh: this logically excludes emotionless cyborgs that live and thrive among us. Sorry, cyborgs!) Please come and support local comedy and the burgeoning U of T comedy scene! Check back for further blogUT reviews of the Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival.

Lead character "B" (Bobby Del Rio). Image from tiff.net

Written & Directed by: Mio Adilman
Starring: Bobby Del Rio, Jean Yoon, Paul Hyung Sun Lee

“Unlocked” is a dramatic comedy about an average, but nice guy named “B” who is trying to get his life back together after some not-so-happy experiences. However, he has to overcome many obstacles throughout his journey into living and rebuilding a normal life.

This film highlights the difficulties downtown Toronto cyclists face with other fellow cyclists, as opposed to the cars versus bikes dilemma we’re all aware of. It just shows how much integrity and tenacity it takes to be a long-term cyclist. It’s not just about riding a bike in your neighbourhood or park just for fun; neither is cycling simply just a mode of transportation. It is, rather, a type of lifestyle for many in Toronto and especially around the U of T campus.

This film is fun, funny, witty, and even a little bit spiritual, although some may disagree. (more…)

Image from Wikipedia

So I went caving, aka “spelunking,” this weekend. I came away with so many bruises but it was all worth it considering how much fun I had. Now for those of you who don’t know what caving is, go here.

I swear that having escaped all of those — what I consider to be — “near death” experiences really changed my perspective on things like how strong our instinctual survival abilities are. I had to climb, crawl, lean against walls and whatever else, whilst holding a tiny flash light in my hand, as I was sure I was close to plunging to my death. Alright I might be exaggerating a bit, considering how much of a wimp I am. I kept having to ask my fellow cavers (yes I made up that word) to help me out, like by telling me how the heck they were able to climb up or down and in or out in the first place.

If you’d like to give caving a try, why not join our very own U of T Outing club (UTOC)? There are several opportunities to go caving with them at their cabin near the Niagara Escarpment. The club also offers other amazing outdoor events and activities.

When: From Thursday, October 15, 2009 at 8:00pm to Saturday, October 17, 2009 at 8:00pm (3 shows, all at 8pm)

Where: The George Ignatieff Theater, just North of Hoskin Avenue

How to Get Tickets: Outside Strachan during lunch, or at the door on the night. You can also reserve tickets by emailing trinity.dramatic.society@gmail.com

If you’re looking for something unique to watch, then Saints Alive is definitely it. Brought to you by your very own U of T students (including seasoned director Victoria Wang), this 1940s Trinity Classic, a play written by Keith MacMillan and Ron Bryden, is sure to impress. Along with great music, this play is expected to bring a barrel of laughs as it spoofs life at St.Hilda’s, Trinity College’s previously all-female residence. This wonderful piece has been showcased numerous times in places such as the Trinity College Centenary.

Having witnessed the rehearsal process myself, I have to say I was truly impressed with the amazing talent as well as the amount of detail they have invested into this production (i.e. costumes). With such a great ensemble cast, production team and original, one-of-a-kind musical to present, Saints Alive is a definite must-see.

Image from the Trinity College Dramatic Society