Alana performed stand-up on the first ever show I saw at the Comedy Studio in Cambridge, Massachusetts. That showcase was called “Women of Color in Comedy,” and Alana shined bright. I wanted to pursue comedy, and I found Alana’s timing, material, sense of humor, and poise to be so inspiring that I tracked her down through her website and wrote her a fan letter.
Alana responded with warmth, encouragement, and an admirably down-to-Earth attitude for somebody who was, to me, such an obvious superstar. We became friends. This was THRILLING to me. Famous hilarious incredible Alana Devich was becoming my friend. I could hardly believe it.
Over the years we wound up performing on tons of comedy shows together, including a series called “Girls Gone Wild,” organized by our funny friend Kelly MacFarland. For one of those shows, Alana wrote some sketches based on Dirty Dancing, one of her favorite movies. We closed the show with a ridiculous dance re-enactment that Alana set up perfectly. At the climactic moment, Alana placed a stool in the middle of the stage, and another comic named Melissa rushed up toward the stage from the center of the audience. Yoga queen Alana did a perfect arms-out locust pose on the stool while Melissa grabbed Alana’s ribs from the audience, perfectly emulating the classic lift move from Dirty Dancing. And the audience. Went. Nuts. It was one of the most delightful, entertaining, magical, silly, fun, brilliant, hilarious moments I’ve ever seen at a comedy show.
Delightful. Entertaining. Magical. Silly. Fun. Brilliant. Hilarious. That’s Alana.
Posted by Erin Judge