Put your fears to rest — John Mulaney will be coming to Zoom on Monday. Amidst rumors of the show's cancellation, A&O Productions has confirmed that the comedian will be coming to Zoom for a Q&A, co-sponsored by NSTV, NU Nights, The Blackout, Studio 22 and Arts Alliance, on May 25 at 7 p.m. CST.
A&O originally announced the Q&A on its social media platforms on May 20, but took down posts announcing the event later that night. This led some students to speculate the event had been cancelled.
"The press freeze yesterday was about as out of the blue for us as it was for anyone watching," said A&O Co-Chair Avery Powell in a statement to NBN. "The last 24 hours were honestly brutal, especially for the members of A&O and our co-spons."
Despite these rumors, A&O re-announced the event on May 21 and confirmed the previously-announced details would remain the same. Powell said in a statement that he was glad to have support from people both within and outside A&O throughout the situation.
"Due [to] the crisis, everyone's had to work three times as hard, three times as fast," Powell said. "Sometimes we hit a snag, but I’m just really grateful that we have so many people, both inside and outside of A&O, that are really dedicated to make these events special, even from home."
Mulaney is known for his standup specials, including New in Town, The Comeback Kid and Kid Gorgeous. The Chicago native has also written for numerous television shows, most notably Saturday Night Live (a show he’s also hosted three times). In addition, Mulaney co-starred alongside Nick Kroll in the 2016 Broadway play Oh, Hello. His most recent special, the children’s musical-inspired John Mulaney & the Sack Lunch Bunch was released on Netflix in December 2019.
Mulaney’s event will be the second installment of A&O’s Spring Speaker Series, following a virtual Q&A with Queer Eye star Jonathan Van Ness earlier this month. Will Mulaney respond to Pete Davidson’s assertion at an A&O event last year that he sounds like a “newsie in the 40s?” Will he perform a rendition of one of his famous musical SNL sketches? Most importantly, will his dog Petunia make an appearance? All these questions and more will be answered on Monday.
More details are available on A&O’s Facebook page.
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Editor's note: This article is an updated version of a story published when the John Mulaney event was first announced. It has been updated to reflect the rumors of the event's cancellation and include a statement provided to NBN by A&O Co-Chair Avery Powell.