University of Idaho Vandal Entertainment is partnering with the Student Alumni Relations Board (SArb) to host a new event this Moms’ Weekend, in place of the usual dueling pianos show.
Dinner and entertainment featuring Jenny Zigrino, also known as the Moms’ Weekend comedy show, will be 6 p.m. Saturday. Tickets will be sold online and at the door for $30 each.
Mia Goodwin, student alumni program coordinator, said SArb wanted to switch it up this year and was looking into a variety of acts. Goodwin said it was Vandal Entertainment that found Zigrino and immediately suggested the comedian.
Zigrino made her debut on Conan O’Brien and was a recent guest on Adam DeVine’s House Party on Comedy Central, but Vandal Entertainment Lectures and Performing Arts Chair, Cruz Botello, said they first saw Zingrino at the National Association for Campus Activities (NACA) conference last semester in Reno, Nevada.
“I really liked her set, and we thought she’d be really appropriate,” Botello said.
Botello said the comedy show will be relatively family friendly because so many students will be bringing their moms and families. Goodwin said Zigrino’s comedy is very relatable, and Botello said she uses observational comedy to bring humor to aspects of everyday life.
“She has this vibe that really will go well with Moms,” Botello said. “She’s witty, and a lot of her stuff is really open and inviting to all age groups and demographics.”
Goodwin said she hopes the comedy show will be more popular among students than the dueling pianos show, which SArb has been hosting for years.
Goodwin said it’s nice to have something to offer for families, but it’s not just for students with their moms, it’s for everyone.
With the influx of people during Moms’ Weekend, waiting lists at restaurants in Moscow are usually pretty long, and Goodwin and Botello agreed that attending the comedy show is a great way to avoid the lines for dinner. Botello said the entertainment piece is really “a cherry on top.”
“There’s no reservations,” Goodwin said. “You’re pretty much good to go. Just show up at six.”
There will be a variety of Italian food served at the event, with gluten free and vegetarian options as well as multiple salads and desserts.
Botello said the event will go for roughly two hours, with the comedy act taking up about an hour of the time. He said the event is an experience that families can bond over that takes a little pressure off of the students who have to entertain their parents.
The comedy show is the last of SArb’s three events this Moms’ Weekend, following the game day shirt reveal Friday afternoon and the brunch with the jazz choir Saturday morning.
Goodwin said her favorite part about planning Moms’ weekend events, even though it takes several months, is the collaboration — getting to communicate with different units on campus and members of the community.
Goodwin said she is excited to see Zigrino perform and to see how people react to the new Moms’ Weekend event. She and Botello agreed that dinner and a show at a reasonable price will be something fun for students to do this weekend.
“As far as I know, everyone loves to laugh, and I think that Jenny is really good at drawing that out of the crowd,” Botello said. “She has a great stage presence.”
Jordan Willson can be reached at [email protected]