Entertainment Board Co-Chair Jennifer Tam received some terrible news last week.
One of the headlining acts in the Fall Comedy Show, Jim Gaffigan, was going to be shooting a commercial in Toronto and was not sure he could make it back in time for the show.
The group suspended all advertising and started looking into alternative dates with Gaffigan's management.
With no definite answer, the group decided Monday to press ahead with plans for a rescheduled show on Saturday, Nov. 19.
Then Entertainment Board received word that Gaffigan could not make the rescheduled date because his wife was scheduled to give birth on Nov. 20. The group started investigating the possibility of hosting the show with another act.
Tuesday morning the group heard that Gaffigan could make the original date after all.
Gaffigan is a comedy veteran who has appeared in the movies "Super Troopers" and "Igby Goes Down" along with the failed sitcom "Welcome to New York" and frequent standup work. He appeared this year in an advertising campaign for Sierra Mist.
Entertainment Board and the Office of Student Activities are investigating the possibility of paying only a portion of Gaffigan's fee because of the confusion. Discussions with his agency are ongoing.
The Entertainment Board now has a daunting task ahead of them: sell more than 600 tickets for Cohen Auditorium in less than 36 hours.
"We'd like to sell out," Tam said. "I don't know if that's possible considering we only have two days."
The Entertainment Board held an emergency meeting Tuesday evening to discuss advertising for the event. The group will be selling tickets at the campus center during the open block today, and will also be tabling in the dining halls.
The show's other headliner, Asian-American comedian Eliot Chang, is being co-sponsored by the Asian Community at Tufts as part of Asian-American Month. The group will be assisting the Entertainment Board in advertising for the event.
Chang has appeared on Comedy Central's "Premium Blend" and "Law and Order: Special Victims Unit."
The lineup is rounded out by Matthew McArthur and Jason Margaca, two local students who were brought to the attention of the Entertainment Board through a friend of a group member.
"We got to watch a video of their performance and we liked them," Tam said, "so we asked them to perform at our show."
The fall comedy show usually only has one headliner, but the additional funding from the Asian Community at Tufts meant there are now two.
The spring comedy show has a larger budget, and usually features a more well-known comedian.
Previous fall comedy shows has featured Dave Attell and Jay Mohr. The late Mitch Hedberg performed at the last comedy show, which was in March. He died suddenly less than three weeks later.
Tickets cost $7 and will be sold today and Thursday at the Aidekman Arts Center box office.
