September 11, 00

Vol. 16 , No. 01   


View Entire Issue (Vol. 16 , No. 01)

Capitol Steps: There's Something Funny Going on in Washington
MIKE THORNTON
MIKE LOOMIS
ANDY CLEMENCE
TRACEY STEPHENS
ANN SCHMITT
MARC IRWIN, piano
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2000

The Capitol Steps are what Washington would be like if everyone were smarter and could sing.

-P.J. O'Rourke

The Capitol Steps make it easier to leave public office.

-President George Bush

The Capitol Steps are a troupe of Congressional staffers-turned-comedians who travel the country satirizing the very people and places that once employed them. Since they began, the Capitol Steps have recorded twenty albums, including their latest, "It's Not Over 'Til the First Lady Sings." They've been featured on NBC, CBS, ABC, and PBS and can be heard four times a year on National Public Radio stations nationwide during their "Politics Takes a Holiday" radio specials. The Capitol Steps have performed for the last four Presidents.

The Steps got their start in December 1981 at a Christmas party for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, when three members of Illinois Republican Senator Charles Percy's staff were asked to provide entertainment. So they decided to dig into the headlines of the day, creating song parodies and skits that have become the group's signature brand of satirical humor.

Most cast members have worked on Capitol Hill; some for Democrats, some for Republicans, and others for politicians who firmly straddle the fence. In fact; the current cast of the Capitol Steps has at one time or another infested the offices of eleven U.S. Senators and seven Members of the House of Representatives. Most of these politicians have either been defeated or placed under investigation. No matter who holds office, there is never a shortage of material- political scandal, controversy, and missteps ensure that the Capitol Steps have plenty to sing about.

For all who suffer from politics-as-usual weariness or pre-election stress, the Office of the Dean of Students and the Athenaeum are bringing the Capitol Steps to CMC to remind everyone that fact is funnier than fiction. Come join the fun. Dinner is for CMC persons only. The performance is open to all.