THE ROUNDLINGS (A History…)

The Roundlings began in the fall of 2019. The ensemble met weekly, focusing on creating stand-up comedy and sketch comedy, while also sharpening their improvisation skills. The group’s first performance was at the RHT Education Center in January 2020. Their sketch “Your dog is dead, Charlie Brown” (featuring the Peanuts gang returning home for Snoopy’s funeral) was the delightfully dark high point of the show. As they started developing material for a performance on the Round House Theatre main stage in the spring…the coronavirus pandemic began.

The Roundlings quickly adapted to creating comedy in a virtual format, producing two more shows that were shared through Zoom. Along the way they have expanded their comedic repertoire to include writing song parodies (most notably “Dog in the Ocean,” a play on DNCE’s “Cake by the Ocean”), performing musical improv, and creating long-form improvised plays. By the fall of 2021, the group had finally started working together in person again. After another sharing at the Round House Theatre Education Center (featuring absolutely no comedy about the misfortune of dogs) in December 2021, The Roundlings began working towards their much delayed and highly anticipated debut on the Round House stage in Bethesda, which finally took place in May 2022.

The Roundlings are an audition- or invite-only ensemble coached by Kevin Corbett, member of DC's Reflecting Fools and former member of The Capitol Steps.