Causing a Ruckus: Kaniecki brings comic relief to campus

Some comedians have a pointed approach, from Jerry Seinfeld’s “Have you ever noticed?” brand of observational comedy to Richard Pryor’s on-stage philosophizing.

But Lizzie Kaniecki, Vice President of Ruckus — Pitt’s improvisational comedy club — says sometimes you have to lighten things up. Her “White Girl Jesus” character has become one of her best-known acts by fellow club members, student viewers and listeners.

Kaniecki quips during her shows, “Hey, I’m White Girl Jesus, and if you want me to turn the party up, I can turn water into wine!”

Aside from her miracle-making Ruckus performances, Kaniecki, a junior film major from Wheeling, West Virginia, is a co-founder of The Poet’s Pit — a poetry club on campus — as well as an active contributor to Pitt’s improv radio show, Ruckusology.

Kaniecki has performed in several higher-profile shows, notably Penn State’s Improv and Comedy Festival, RAWR and the Del Close 56 hour improv marathon in New York City. Through her performances over the past two years, Kaniecki’s unassuming personality and riffs on everyday life have been regular highlights in Pitt’s comedy scene.

After attending one of Ruckus’ events in Nordy’s Place during her first year at Pitt, Kaniecki felt captivated by its atmosphere. She triumphed over her performance anxiety, auditioned and successfully joined the club. Prior to her audition, Kaniecki had no experience with improv and didn’t know if she’d continue with it once she jumped in.

“I knew I wanted to do something funny but I didn’t know what,” she recalled, adding that after her first try, “that was when I felt like I wanted to pursue comedy. I felt like that was where I really fit.”

Since then, Kaniecki has developed her own style of comedy, drawing on ordinary routines of daily life and transforming them into humor. One post from her personal blog, Womansplaining, shows her ability to somehow connect the importance of kindness and patience to her most recent Uber ride.

The post, referring to a bizarre but lovable Uber driver, reads: “[The driver] pulls out a microphone, looks me straight in the eye and screams, ‘Uber Karaoke! Do you have a song ready?’ Since this has never happened to anyone ever, I did not. She said, ‘That’s okay — I’ll go!’ She put on a song that she really did not know all the words to, but [I] sang as much as she did.”

Her jokes, when she strays from commentary on the mundane, can be unreserved — Kaniecki describes herself as a sort of “contrarian.”

“Whenever someone asks a question or says something that warrants a response, I say whatever they probably don’t want me to say,” she said.

Once, in response to a friend’s innocent admiration of a cloud one evening, she urged him to take things a step further, saying, “Oh, you just get his number, see if he’s single … he’s giving you the eye, he’s telling you to come over.”

Meghan Ferraro, a junior accounting major who works with Kaniecki on Ruckus’ executive board, said her friend has grown as both a comedian and a person since her first year at Pitt. Kaniecki’s focus, according to Ferraro, has moved beyond her own performance. She advises new members, establishes a supportive atmosphere and has become open and candid with her humor.

“She’s definitely grown more confident as a comedian over the years,” Ferraro explained. “[She’s] stepping forward — helping some of the newer members also become more confident.”

Comedy’s not the only art Kaniecki’s dabbled in during her time at Pitt — after reading a poem she wrote at her first open mic night, she also discovered a love of poetry.

Kaniecki teamed up in the fall of her first year with fellow poetry buff Tallon Kennedy, who hails from Columbus, Ohio. They mapped out a club plan, which began with a casual trip to Panther Hollow Lake to offer students the chance to share their art. About 50 student poets came to the first meeting, which has since become a safe space for students to express their interests in comedy, creativity and innovative thinking.

Kaniecki approaches her own poetry with a powerful connection, drawing on her innermost thoughts and feelings when writing. Her use of hand gestures and raised eyebrows when she performs makes it seem as though she’s speaking to the person to whom she originally wrote the poem.

“Anything above the normal threshold of feeling is what makes me want to write about it,” Kaniecki said.

Her poetry is minimally edited and rarely re-drafted. A piece that starts out in the Notes app of her phone — triggered by feelings of accomplishment, disappointment, anger or hope — sometimes reaches completion in one sitting. Kaniecki’s approach prompts her audience to not only hear but to feel the genuineness of her words.

Kennedy — the co-founder of The Poet’s Pit — said Kaniecki is able to mix humor into the group’s poetry open mic nights, as the events can sometimes feel tense.

“[As MC] she was able to contrast that heaviness with this lighter, more humorous, more open and friendly atmosphere between the poems,” Kennedy explained.

Dana Och, an English and film studies professor at Pitt, said Kaniecki has a rare ability to make insightful connections between comedy, social issues and politics.

One of Kaniecki’s poems, “Female Drivers,” addresses what the poet-comedian calls the “stencil” of body image, intelligence and propriety that women in modern society feel restricted to.

“She’s bold in class … she is willing to ask troublesome or interesting questions and push analysis beyond the surface,” Och said.

Kaniecki’s inspiration comes from lead contemporary female comedians in the industry, such as Amy Poehler and Carrie Brownstein, and this influence surges into her comedy and personal views as well.

“Ruckus is kind of a matriarchy,” according to Kaniecki, whose work with the improv group has only increased her concern for women in the comedy industry.

Whether she will be doing a traveling comedy tour or working with Brownstein on “Portlandia,” Kaniecki fully intends to incorporate comedy into her career — all while pushing the limits, questioning the everyday and continuing to elbow her way into a male-dominated industry.

“You shouldn’t be too scared of the powers at be, because that’s when the powers at be are too dangerous and when you need to make fun of them,” Kaniecki said.