For a handful of fourth-graders at Ronald C. Warnick Jewish Day School in Foster City, being the class clowns isn’t such a bad thing.
Not when they can put their budding comedic skills to such good use. The 10 students in Terry Sands’ “Comedy Kids” after-school improv class just landed their first paid gig, with all proceeds helping to save a life.
On Sunday, June 6, the Comedy Kids will stage “Circus Oy Vey, the Most Decrepit Circus on Earth,” a night of improv comedy at Temple Beth Jacob in Redwood City. The goal, besides sparking laughter, is to raise money for a South Bay immigrant woman in desperate need of a kidney transplant.
“They’re turning professional now,” says Sands, a South Bay motivational speaker and drama/dance/improv comedy teacher. “We always put on a show at school or Kabalat Shabbat, but this is their first time outside.”
If the Looney Tunes personalities of Comedy Kids members Adin Walker, Taylor Stone and Minda Newhouse — all age 10 — are any clue, they shouldn’t have any trouble winning over the crowd.
Adin has a flair for comedy of the absurd. Minda does a wicked British accent, and she is pretty good at getting on all fours and whinnying like a horse. Taylor’s specialty is an improv game called Dubbing, in which two actors pantomime the action while two others off-stage provide the “dubbed” dialogue.
“I saw an ad in the school flier,” recalls Taylor of her first encounter with Comedy Kids. “I liked joking around with my friends, so I thought I’d try it.”
Adds Minda, who happens to be Sands’ daughter: “I like being funny. You can harness your creativity.”
Even at his young age, Adin has had considerable experience on stage, having acted in productions mounted by ACT in San Francisco and the California Shakespeare Festival in the East Bay. Most of the other kids are new to the theater, but Sands says they are all like old pros.
“I’m always amazed with certain students that seem to be born with comic timing,” notes Sands. “Comedy is a deep intellectual process. These kids learn in their Jewish school to discuss, analyze and compare their history to the present.”
In fact, Sands is quick to link the art of comedy with her students’ Jewish backgrounds. “Jews have a rich history in the performing arts,” she says. “Improv is a modern day venue where kids can explore their Jewish theatrical voice.”
For the kids, blending improv and Judaism is a snap. “We’re all Jewish,” says Minda, “and we throw in Jewish bits in our show like Camp Kreplach and the three-headed rabbi.”
But for the kids now, the most important Jewish angle in their upcoming show is the mitzvah of saving a life. Maria Carrillo is the niece of Sands’ friend. Though only 23, she suffers from lupus aggravated by the birth of her daughter, now 8 months old. Her kidneys are shot. A transplant is her only hope, but she has no insurance.
That’s where the Comedy Kids come in. Every penny the troupe raises at its show goes toward helping Carrillo pay for the surgery. “It’s a mitzvah to help someone,” says Adin.”
Adds Taylor: “It feels good.”
Comedy Kids’ “Circus Oy Vay, the Most Decrepit Circus On Earth,” 7 p.m. Sunday, June 6, at Temple Beth Jacob, 1550 Alameda de las Pulgas, Redwood City. Tickets: $4-$8. Information: (650) 368-9130.