Don’t Tell Comedy Pop-Up Show can be a feel-good remedy and recharge for wellness

Matt Ratterman
Thu, 30 Mar 2023 00:43:25 +0000
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Don’t Tell Comedy typically runs four to five shows every weekend in secret locations, the next set for Friday. Credit: James Godwin

Laughter may be one of the best medicines to fix those post-spring break blues, and Don’t Tell Comedy might just have the right dose.

Laughter has been known to improve many aspects of people’s overall wellness. According to HelpGuide.org, laughter “draws people together in ways that trigger healthy physical and emotional changes in the body.”

Don’t Tell Comedy’s next Pop-Up Show is set for Friday at 7 p.m. — with another following shortly at 9:30 p.m. — at a secret location in the Short North Arts District.

The Don’t Tell Comedy Pop-Up Show setup is secretive, according to the Don’t Tell Comedy website. Each show’s location is only revealed at 8 a.m. on the day of the event to those who enter their email and select a show to attend on Don’t Tell Comedy’s website. The comedians in the show are undisclosed until they take the stage.

Undergraduate Wellness Coordinator of the Ohio State Student Wellness Center Roger Perkey said laughter and comedy can be good for health and order within one’s life.

“We know that people are doing these types of events together, so you have the social aspect,” Perkey said. “Whenever we’re laughing, oftentimes, there’s some chemical reactions happening within our body, happening within our brain that are releasing essentially these happy chemicals which are going to keep us balanced and keep us, hopefully, level-footed, ready to move forward for whatever the next challenge might be.”

Perkey also said comedy could remove barriers in one’s life to allow for self-improvement.

“Whenever we are laughing, whenever we’re enjoying whatever this is, whether it’s a show, whether it’s an improv troupe, whether it’s actually going to a comedy show, you can insert whatever that thing is and our barriers come down, we feel a little bit more at ease. We feel like we can be our authentic selves,” Perkey said.

Producer, host and comedian for Don’t Tell Comedy Simon Fraser described how comedy helps everyone who comes to their shows.

“They make you and I better, because it’s so fun just to meet all these comedians from around the country, hang out with them, laugh with them and banter with them. It’s just a positive thing,” Fraser said.

Fraser said physically watching the show makes the comedy even better than on a screen.

“You can watch comedy on TikTok and Instagram, but being there in the room is what’s memorable,” Fraser said. “It’s being with people laughing, sharing experiences, sharing experiences with strangers”

Fraser also went in-depth on the trust that ticket buyers have in Don’t Tell Comedy when they don’t know who they’ll see perform.

“The least we can do is bring in talent that we know is hopefully gonna make as many people laugh in that room as possible,” Fraser said.

When talking about his own experience, producer Peter Ostapowicz said the shows make him feel great.

“Just from my personal perspective, I have a great time at the shows, and I sometimes see the same comedians go up a couple times a night, and the jokes are still hilarious to me,” Ostapowicz said.

General admission tickets for the show typically run at $25, and the age requirement is 21-plus. Audience members can bring their own drinks and snacks, according to the Don’t Tell Comedy website.