By, Kelly Cwik, Asst. A&E Editor

Manhattan College’s own improv group, Scatterbomb, is back performing shows in-person making MC students laugh on Friday nights in Hayden 100. Their last show of the semester was titled “Scatterbomb Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus.” The witty, comical group continues to bring joy to campus and put smiles on students’ faces.

Sydney Waitt, a senior political science and peace and justice studies major, explained the different ways Scatterbomb brings her joy, such as the creative outlet the group provides, the support of those that attend, and those that she has met throughout her time in Scatterbomb.

“The people that I’ve met through Scatterbomb are so amazing and creative and talented and I find myself having the hardest time being on stage and not bursting out laughing myself,” Waitt said. “So I think also in that way, Scatterbomb brings me so much joy.”

The improv troupe does the same for Maren Kain, a senior communication major, who loves having the ability to make people laugh especially after a week of classes.

“Making other people smile and have a good time and laugh and let go a little bit after like, especially on Friday nights I feel like after such a long week of classes makes me incredibly happy,” Kain said.

Scatterbomb had three shows this semester with a packed audience for each of them. The group has welcomed four new members this semester, one of them being Daniel Baer, a freshman marketing major and global business double major. He joined Scatterbomb after seeing the fliers on campus and wanting to try something new.

Baer described his favorite part of Scatterbomb which is the uncertainty of what is going to happen during a show.

“How unpredictable it can be because again, you don’t really know where the show’s gonna go. You don’t know what jokes are gonna be made,” Baer said. “And so you always have to be kind of quick on your feet and be able to adapt to any sort of change or if you have to come up with something funny on your feet.”

The unpredictability of the shows is what Cooper Carleton, a sophomore communication major, enjoys about Scatterbomb.

“I just like the whole idea of getting to perform and it’s no pressure, honestly, because it’s improv,” Carleton said. “It’s all 100 percent made up. There’s nothing you’re really doing beforehand other than going to the practices. There’s no studying involved. It’s just show up and kind of go, so I kind of like that aspect of it.”

The group practices one to two times a week, and Waitt enjoys the time they all spend together and getting to see each other grow and improve.

“You have all these random comedians in a room, and you know, it’s different when you’re not in front of an audience because I think that it builds a different level of comfort with you and your teammates,” Waitt said. “And I think especially watching Maria Thomas and Marin Kain, who have been on the team with me since sophomore year, like watching everyone grow, and then watching our new members really get acclimated into it is so rewarding, in a way.”

Waitt recalled one of her favorite improv moments which occurred her sophomore year. The girls in the group were pretending to have a bachelorette party in Las Vegas when former teammate Aedan Roney tapped them out and brought on a group of the guys and said they were at a bachelor party in colonial Williamsburg.

“It’s stuff like that, where you’re just like, ‘Who even thinks of that, who even comes up with that?’. So I think that was my funniest moment or the funniest moment I can remember.”

The group has a few pre-show rituals that they do together to prepare for the show. One specifically, is singing.

“I think people would be surprised we just sing a lot. Like we sing a lot,” Kain said. “And I think it’s funny because I’m like a musical theater kid and so, that’s not weird to me, but I love when we bring new people on and they realize that we literally just like sing for 30 minutes before the show.”

Scatterbomb is planning on having a show next semester on January 28, 2021 at 8pm in Hayden 100.