It’s the spring of 1974. The Watergate scandal is in full swing. The American people are questioning the security of democracy. And what does a group of Northwestern students do?

They perform comedy skits about the whole ordeal.

In one, Richard Nixon accepts an Academy Award. In another, a congressman sings a song about Watergate to the tune of a The Music Man number. The night of April 12, 1974, the comedy group Mee-Ow made their debut at the McCormick Auditorium.

Mee-Ow describes their act on Instagram as “one-third sketch, one-third improv and one-third rock & roll.” Over the past 51 years, the comedy group has gained prestige and popularity among students, faculty and beyond. Their ranks have included a string of big-name cast members like Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Seth Meyers and Kristen Schaal. From Mee-Ow’s big premiere to their most-recent show, North by Northwestern embarks on an archival journey exploring the history of the iconic student-run improv and comedy group.

1974 – The Beginning

The first ever Mee-Ow show, Just In Time, ran the weekend of April 12-14. While the annual act now includes short-form improv and a live band, the first show consisted of 40 written skits — some in the form of a musical, some zeroing in on dramatics, but all comedic. The original cast consisted of 39 students. Over the years, as the group learned how to produce a successful show, that number has dwindled to the single digits, but it has remained completely student-run.  

Prior to Mee-Ow’s existence, the musical theatre group Waa-Mu was the only big student-led production on campus. Founded in 1929, the group had established its legacy at the school. However, after leaving Waa-Mu’s performance the previous year unsatisfied by the content of the show, Paul Warshauer (Speech ‘75) and Josh Lazar (Weinberg ‘75) produced Mee-Ow as an “alternative” to Waa-Mu. 

Mee-Ow’s debut was met with backlash. Students appreciated how Mee-Ow’s producers were aiming to create a less selective show than Waa-Mu; however, many believed the show itself was poorly executed at times. A string of The Daily Northwestern articles were published after the show, written by the then-president of Orgy of the Arts — an organization that produces many student-run shows. These pieces revealed tensions between the cast and crew. 

“It’s amazing that people sat through that garbage,” said one observer, according to The Daily. 

1980-81 – Julia Louis-Dreyfus

After six years of perfecting their craft, Mee-Ow began to establish themselves in the theatre department. In 1980, Julia Louis-Dreyfus joined the cast and performed in their Ten Against the Empire show. Louis-Dreyfus made it onto Mee-Ow her first year, which, if you know your Mee-Ow facts, happens very rarely. 

Not only was it rare for freshmen in general to be accepted, but it was even more uncommon for a freshman woman to make it in the group. Paul Barosse (Speech ‘80), one of Louis-Dreyfus’s fellow cast members, says the Mee-Ow group was impressed by her talent from the start.

“It was pretty much a boys’ club, and you really had to stand out to make it as a girl,” he says.

After juggling both school and being a cast member of The Second City, Chicago’s renowned improv and sketch comedy group, Louis-Dreyfus left after her junior year at Northwestern when she got the role of a regular cast member on the show Saturday Night Live.

1996 – Seth Meyers

By 1996, Mee-Ow had been established at Northwestern for 22 years. Seth Meyers (Speech ‘96), former SNL cast member and host of NBC’s Late Night With Seth Meyers, was an RTVF major with a passion for comedy.

Meyers auditioned for Mee-Ow three times, starting as a freshman, before getting in his senior year. He said that finally becoming a cast member changed the trajectory of his future career.

“I loved it so much that I remember thinking that I, for the first time in my life, knew what I wanted to at least try to do and that I would try to do it until someone told me I didn’t have to do it anymore, or I wasn’t good enough to do it anymore,” Meyers told The Daily in 2017.

Meyers’s rise to fame in the world of comedy has only added to the success of Mee-Ow, as he has credited the group multiple times in his fruitful career.

1999-2000 – Kristen Schaal

The 2000 show Mee-Ow On Ice featured Kristen Schaal (Speech ‘00), who is now an actress, comedian and writer. The group opened the show alongside Schaal with a song about how old and run-down Shanley Pavilion is, throwing in jokes about how it was made with pieces of the cross and was the first building to cross the Atlantic Ocean over 30,000 years ago.

Not long after her performance in 2000, Schaal moved to New York to continue pursuing her comedy and acting career. She has appeared in many different television shows such as Bob’s Burgers and Gravity Falls and wrote for popular shows including How I Met Your Mother and Ugly Betty.

Schaal returned to Northwestern in April of 2024 for Mee-Ow Fest, when the comedy group celebrated their 50-year anniversary. In an Instagram post, she reminisced on good times with a caption stating, “Thank you for a wonderful 50th reunion Northwestern Mee-Ow! It was great to be surrounded by creative and funny people of all ages. This show means a lot. @lizcackowski and I still have our 1999 hoodies, baby!”

2024 – The Mee-Ow Band Takes On Dillo Day

After a successful winter of shows, the Mee-Ow band — which was established in 1984 as a musical accompaniment to the comedy sketches — was eager to keep their momentum going. Taking the next step as a music group, the band decided to compete in the 2024 Battle of the Artists, a competition for student musicians and groups to secure a slot performing at Dillo Day. The Mee-Ow band secured the win, ready to take to the big stage.

They had never played a gig of this caliber. Communication fourth-year Sam Marshall, Mee-Ow’s music director and guitarist, says a crowd this large was a big step up. 

“We rehearsed our set to death,” Marshall says. “It was a nerve-wracking situation, but we just practiced and practiced.” 

When the day came to perform, Marshall says he was so nervous that his hands weren’t moving how he’d like them to. However, while playing in front of family and friends and having his bandmates by his side, Marshall had the performance of a lifetime.

“It was a little scary, but looking across this stage and seeing my bandmates was comforting,” he says. “We were all a little nervous, but then that kept us tight and on top of it. It was a really surreal moment to be like, ‘Whoa, we’re playing this big stage. It’s for us.’”

2025 – Mee-Ow Today

In its 51st year, Mee-Ow is still producing sketches and improv. The group performed twice this Winter Quarter during week four — The Mee-Owgic School Bus — and week eight — Knives Mee-Owt. Even after half a century, the group still finds ways to evolve.

Usually, only the opening sketch ties with the theme of the show, but this year Communication fourth-year and co-director Brenden Dahl suggested including a closing sketch based on the theme that also calls back to sketches throughout the show. Co-director and Communication fourth-year Shai Bardin hopes this format continues in the years to come.

“Adding that level wraps [the show] into a bow,” Bardin says. “That part of it was very satisfying and exciting, artistically.”

For the past 50 years, Mee-Ow has been produced and sponsored by the Northwestern Arts Alliance (AA). In recent years, the two groups’ goals began to diverge, leading Mee-Ow to split away from AA and file their own producer petitions for the upcoming 2025-26 season. While the split marked a critical change in the partnership of Mee-Ow and AA, Dahl says there is no animosity between the two groups.

Mee-Ow has touched the lives of many students over the years. From current members to famous alumni to the group’s creators, Mee-Ow has become a part of the University’s rich arts culture. 

“[Mee-Ow’s accomplishments] in and of itself is really exciting and really drew me to Mee-Ow, drew me to Northwestern,” Bardin says.

The group has no plan to slow down. Though Mee-Ow has no more performances lined up for this school year, Bardin is excited to see where Mee-Ow’s talent brings them in the coming years.

“Even though you’re students doing a student show, the actual feat that you’re doing, the thing that you’re putting on is so impressive, is good, is entertaining,” Bardin says. “That kind of legacy is really awesome.”

Print design by Sofia Hargis-Acevedo.