What do a baby detective, cool grandmas and “Principal Shminzie” have in common? They are all a part of ETHS’ 67th annual production of YAMO, a sketch comedy show completely written, acted and composed by ETHS students. From the quick-witted directorial minds of seniors Nat Sotnick, Arlo Lee, Jane MorrisHoffer, Zach Cutter, Gracie Puricelli and Joss Watson, “YAMO: Ate My Homework” opened on Sept. 27th in the Upstairs Theater.
As the orchestra fades and the lights come on, the audience is thrown into the world of “Yamo High” – a fictitious parallel of ETHS – in which the new school year has just begun. The show revolves around the goings-on at school, with sketches about the new phone policy, about joining quirky clubs and the zany antics of wannabe-cool teachers. At Yamo High, the morning announcements seem to take forever, with Dean Boyd’s voice blaring “bell-to-bell, no cell!” and with “Principal Shminzie” comically snatching away phones, garnering laughs from an audience for whom this is all too familiar. The opening sketch, “First Day of School,” displays the writers’ attention to detail about ETHS’ rollout of the new phone policy. The sketch is peppered with clever specifics one could miss in a blink, like the “no-screenshot” rule when scanning student IDs.
YAMO’s three acting companies contributed equally to the sketches: The Unexpected company broke into, well, unexpected song and dance in a parody of “What Was I Made For?” The Acting company provided a hysterical fever-dream dining experience with “Oh, Waiter?” And the Impulse company ran an advertisement for a male-attracting inhaler. Act One sketches like “Alphonse” and “End of the World” took unexpected twists and turns, resulting in chaotically perfect resolutions. However, the ultimate crowd pleaser sketch from Act One was the finale, “Election Night at Yamo High,” a parody of the recent debate between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. The direct quotes from the candidates combined with spot-on impressions were Saturday Night Live–worthy. YAMO veterans and newcomers alike shined on stage, with most cast members having equal opportunity to flaunt their comedic chops.
The smooth hip-hop interludes by the YAMO Dance company to songs “Back on 74” and “On My Mama” proved to be both a fantastic palate cleanser and an opportunity to recover from high-intensity sketches like, “Sleepover Games” and “A Spiritual Experience.”
This generation’s whip-smart humor and play-on-pop-culture references could be found in many of the Act Two sketches. “Who am I texting?” and “Cool Teacher” elicited much laughter (and groans) from the audience, while the British hit reality show, “Love Island,” became “Bird Island.” The spoof stirred up laughs with its absurd British accents and caricatures of the eccentric contestants. A personal favorite sketch, “Afternoon Announcements,” did not produce the most gut-busting reactions compared to others, but the Unexpected company members’ witty one-liner announcements made for a hilarious three or four minutes. If you are on the fence about seeing YAMO again, see it for this skit, because this sketch has jokes you will have missed the first time.
Act Two kept the energy up. Indeed, the actors seemed more confident about delivering lines and talking directly to the audience, making it more engaging than Act One. In the closing sketch, “Graduation,” characters from Act One made cameo appearances creating a thematic bridge between the two halves of the show. As “Graduation” was coming to a close, I found myself overcome with the same bittersweet feeling you get at a graduation: I did not want the show to end, and as I filed into the hallway to greet the actors, I really wished I had bought another ticket.
The student-led YAMOrchestra provided lively instrumentals of popular songs that gave the audience time to recover from the pure hysteria of the sketches, while eagerly anticipating the next one. The orchestra also accompanied the entire YAMO cast as they sang an original song to close out the show – demonstrating the true collaboration of talent that defines 67 years of YAMO.
As of now, YAMO is sold out. But, if you see it, you will surely sense the entire cast’s joy of finally performing on stage their creative labors of love. For an opening night, there were no set-piece mishaps, no forgotten lines and no apparent stage fright. A riveting amalgam of comedic writing at its sitcom-best, acting at its funniest and a stage crew at its most astute, “YAMO: Ate My Homework” is a show that will actually make you want to go to school.
