"What if a motivational speaker was a loser?" "What if an unfrozen caveman became a lawyer?" "What if Forest Whitaker was a baby?"

Some of history's greatest comedy sketches started out as a simple question; a premise. In this writing workshop taught by all-time great sketch comedian Kevin McDonald, you’ll learn how to take a simple, single-sentence premise and build it into a complete, structured comedy sketch.

All you have to bring is a one-line idea ("what if a guy was $10 short of being a millionaire?")  and together with Kevin and your classmates you will discuss how to break that premise down into a full comedy sketch. This is a writers room focused workshop -- there is no improvising or performance required!

After the class, you'll take your newly developed sketch outline home, write up a full draft, and send it to Kevin to received personalized, detailed notes from one of the best sketch comedians of all time. Pretty good deal!

ABOUT THE TEACHER
Comedian, actor, writer, and director Kevin McDonald founded The Kids in the Hall with friend Dave Foley, after they met in Toronto at Second City, and the television series ran from 1988-1995. In the troupe's television series and stage shows, he portrays several popular recurring characters, such as the King of Empty Promises, Sir Simon Milligan, and Jerry Sizzler. McDonald went on to appear in a variety of films including Boy Meets Girl, Lilo & Stitch, Lilo & Stitch: The Series, and Epic Movie.

On television, he has appeared on The Martin Short Show, Ellen, That '70s Show, Seinfeld, Friends, NewsRadio,  MADtv, Arrested Development, and Corner Gas. McDonald has also done voice work for various animated series, including Nickelodeon's Invader Zim, The Angry Beavers, Catscratch, and Clerks: The Animated Series. He also played an imaginary friend named Ivan in the episode ‘Sight For Sore Eyes’ on Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, appeared in the music video for "Roses" by Outkast, and made an appearance in Tim and Eric's Awesome Show.

In 2006 McDonald hosted a CBC Television special, featuring several of Canada's best-known sketch comedy troupes. Sketch with Kevin McDonald won a Canadian Comedy Award (Best Taped Live Performance - The Minnesota Wrecking Crew). He was recently at the Just for Laughs Festival with the reunion of Kids in the Hall, and also with his show Hammy and the Kids with Craig Northey, based on his two dysfunctional families, his father ("Hammy") and the Kids in the Hall, as well as Death Comes to Town on CBC.