Shows + Tickets
We'll have tickets in a bit... don't you worry sly dogs.
JANUARY 15th
IN THE BIG THEATRE
FAC OFF
4:30pm*
Big Theater
It's Fac-off time! The annual improv show where Theatre School faculty and students work together to create joy! Come watch your favorite faculty get silly on stage!
*NOTE: THE OFFICIAL TIME IS NOW 4:30 PM!
BE THERE OR BE SAD!
What Really Happened
6:30pm
Big Theater
An improvised biopic show where the audience gets to see history in the making.
Be a part of history.
Jess Saying
Opening for What Really Happened
One silly gal doing big stand-up in the big city! But in a really cool and epic and freaking awesome way unlike anything ever seen before!
R.O.A.D (Mainstage Show)
8:00pm
Big Theater
The 2025 MessFest Anchor show!
A sketch show directed by Second City Mainstage Alum Julia Morales.
chronicALLY online
10:00pm
Big Theater
NOTE: This is doubleslotted with "In Defense of Myself"
A multimedia solo show by Ally Montgomery that examines the way we live our lives online.
In Defense of Myself
10:00pm
Big Theater
NOTE: This is doubleslotted with "chronicALLY online"
We all do things that don't make sense, and sometimes you feel like you need to defend yourself. This show is a (somewhat) comprehensive guide to self defense, life strategy, and exploration of self.
This Blows: Let It Snow
Midnight
Big Theater
A sketch show that lays it all out on the table, blows it up, and snorts it.
IN THE SMALL THEATRE
Funny as All Hells
5:30pm
Small Theater
Two devilish fiends invite you to a sketch show based around personal hells. Do you dare to be tormented with endless laughter?
REVOLTING
Opening for Funny as All Hells
REVOLTING is a two-prov night of torture. Follow Ollie and Li's attempt to survive IMPROVING FOR 15 WHOLE MINUTES, at the brutal unwavering hands of a malevolent host (Brady Barrow).
Will they make it out alive?!?
Probably not.
Tale of Culebra
7:30pm
Small Theater
The Tale of Culebra is a comedic play in the blended style of a Western AND a Telenovela. Two rivals -- a hero cowboy and a stubborn drug lord -- find themselves in a predicament when they find out they may have the same baby mama!
Admission Process
9:30pm
Small Theater
Did you know there are schools outside Chicago and some people go to them? Strange, right?
These two transfer students lived through them, and they are ready to tell all. Loss, community, and being where you don’t belong — all things worth laughing about! We promise.
The Wharp
11:00pm
Small Theater
The Wharp is an original table-top role playing game being developed by me (Daniel Driessen) with a focus on player creativity and freedom. Players of this game can make literally any character they want. A wizard? For sure. A ghost? Easy. A cartoon dog detective who is also a ghost? Even more Easy. A robot with real human meat hands? No problem. Bugs Bunny? I'd worry about copywrite but of course you can. In The Wharp, you can be literally anything, and literally anything can happen because of it.
JANUARY 16th
IN THE BIG THEATRE
DePaul Musical Theatre Major Class of 2025 Freshman Showcase
5:00pm
Big Theater
This is the breakout performance of the very real and serious DePaul Musical Theatre Major Class of 2025. Witness their emergence into the world of musical theatre and see true artists in action.
Commedia Forté
6:30pm
Big Theater
A musical sketch show where a group of lowly jesters perform their songs to impress the king.
Seeking Representation (Senior Showcase)
8:00pm
Big Theater
The BFA Comedy Arts Senior Showcase.
Blow the Man Down!
10:00pm
Big Theater
An original musical farce following a group of disheveled whalers in 1850. Upon discovery of a mysterious creature, the crewmates each realizes this might be their ticket off this miserable ship.
Jules Astaire's Variety Hour
Midnight
Big Theater
A variety show extravaganza showcasing the newest, brightest, and most hilarious under 21 drag artists in Chicago.
IN THE SMALL THEATRE
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My Big Fat Rom-Com Sketch Show
4:15pm*
Small Theater
Are you a hopeless romantic? A rom-com fanatic? Was your most played song of the year Kiss Me by Sixpence None the Richer? Then you'll fall in love with My Big Fat Rom-Com Sketch Show! Come watch a rose bundle of sketches by rom-com fans, FOR rom-com fans!
*NOTE: The official time for love is now 4:15. Don't hopeless, come live laugh love!
SKYLAR HARTS
Opening for My Big Fat Rom-Com Sketch Show
A Brecht-style vocal performance.
Listen Up
5:30pm
Small Theater
A story telling standup variety show... let me tell ya.
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I Can Keep Going
7:30pm
Small Theater
What does it mean to be the best?
Sure the term is entirely subjective, sure it sounds egotistical to call yourself the best without any guarantee. But what we can guarantee is that I Can Keep Going feels like a protein powered jet engine that shoots out raw cash money.
KILL ISHA-PROV
Opening for I Can Keep Going
Isha dies, improv style.
Diva Cup
9:00pm
Small Theater
Sketch show by women for women. Men are allowed to come... however they should be aware of the pink tax.
Big Joebot's Stand-up Showcase
10:30pm
Small Theater
A night of stand-up at the GearGrinder Comedy Club led by mechanical host Big Joebot. His mission: to prove that humans aren't nearly as funny as robots.
Baby Box
Midnight
Small Theater
A sketch show from the minds of Ella Carey and Sarah Metz. Directed by Rocco Meo.
The Sabrina Show! MessFest Edition
Opening for Baby Box
A multimedia standup show about Sabrina, a third year Comedy Arts major with a lot of stories and antidotes she wants to tell.
JANUARY 17th
IN THE BIG THEATRE
Nobody Can Take a Jork These Days
5:00pm
Big Theater
The BFA 1 Comedy Arts students collaborated for over a decade and forged a brand spankin' new sketch show that will certainly have you raising your eyebrows and covering your pants.
Too Big for This City
6:30pm
Big Theater
A two person sketch show with Audrey Gold and Luke Herman.
MEOSNOW
Opening for Too Big For This City
MEOSNOW delivers what the people want: old-fashioned improvisational comedy. This phantasmic duo will take your ideas build them through the ground up, filter them through their noggin, and spit them right back at you in comedy that can only be described as MEOSNOW!
R.O.A.D (Mainstage Show)
8:00pm
Big Theater
The 2025 MessFest Anchor show!
A sketch show directed by Second City Mainstage Alum Julia Morales.
To The Worst of Us
10:00pm
Big Theater
To The Worst Of Us is a sarcastic nightmare of a comedy taking place over the course of a single day, in a single room, with a single bomb. Oh, and eight women definitely capable of murder.
Transsexual Creatures from Planet They
Midnight
Big Theater
A transgender, homosexual, horror cabaret from outer space!
IN THE SMALL THEATRE
Lapse in Judgement
5:00pm
Small Theater
An improvised trial.
Fun Fact Friday
6:30pm
Small Theater
A series of slideshow presentations shared between friend so we all can learn something new!
Appease the Algorithm
8:00pm
Small Theater
Luke and Melina Appease the Algorithm.
CLOWN POETRY
Opening for Appease the Algorithm.
The clown Aidan Hanlon-Smith,
Performs some silly poems,
You can laugh at him.
Roast of No Longer Topical Celebrities
9:30pm
Small Theater
Sometimes people weren't comedians when people were relevant. Thanks Roast Of No Longer Topical Celebrities, anyone can be be Roasted at any time. NO ONE IS SAFE!
DOG EATS GOD
Opening for Roast of No Longer Topic Celebrities
A three-prov show that explores your innermost thoughts, fears, and desires. Come with us on a journey of the subconscious, and meet your maker.
Florida Man
11:00pm
Small Theater
NOTE: This is doubleslotted with "I'll Never Lie Again"
Sydney Breedlove talks about Florida.
I'll never lie again
11:00pm
Small Theater
NOTE: This is doubleslotted with "Florida Man"
A stand up special surrounding Ava Cairl coming clean about everything she’s lied about. For real.
JANUARY 18th
IN THE BIG THEATRE
Seeking Representation (Senior Showcase)
8:00pm
Big Theater
The BFA Comedy Arts Senior Showcase.
Witch, Please
7:00 pm
Big Theater
A musical gay romp set in 1692 Salem.
Saturday Morning
9:00pm
Big Theater
Saturday Morning is an animated sketch show that brings Comedy Arts, Film, and Animation students all together. It’s the ultimate meeting of the minds resulting in the most twisted, revealing and thought provoking show you’ve ever seen. Come see Saturday Morning, come change yourself forever.
Minprov
Midnight
Big Theater
Improv like you’ve never seen it.
A revolution.
Unforgettable.
Monster Inside Me
Opening for Minprov
A stand up exploring the different monsters I have had, varying from legit parasites to OCD thoughts.
IN THE SMALL THEATRE
We're Back: An Alumni Showcase
7:00pm
Small Theater
A return to the MessFest stage for graduates of the Comedy Arts program. They're back and better than ever!
Christlike
8:30pm
Small Theater
A solo show created by Joseph Walsdorf about his personal reckoning with a life in the Catholic Church and the less discussed but more hilarious aspects of it.
Real Talk with Rocco Meo
10:00pm
Small Theater
After being dogged on by his friend, Li Angorola, a young comedian, Rocco Meo, looks to find something he can fall back on in case of his eminent demise in comedy. Will he be able to pick up a new skill or lose all social awareness in the process?
WRITING INTO OBLIVION
Opening for Real Talk with Rocco Meo
A sketch show from the group Writing Into Oblivion.
Smut Til You Nut
Midnight
Small Theater
A night of the smuttiest fanfiction in Chicago...