By JIMMY KEMPER
Scene Writer
In case you haven't heard, NasimPedrad will be performing stand-up comedy tonight at 10 at Legends, in an event sponsored by the Student Union Board. Pedrad is in her fifth season on "Saturday Night Live" and is also currently the longest tenured woman and first Iranian-American on the show.
Nasim first began her comedy career while studying theatre at University of California, Los Angeles, where she participated in the talent show, "Spring Sing," and performed in theater shows that ranged from classics to contemporary dramas.
After graduating, Pedrad focused on gaining experience in improv and writing her own comedy pieces by participating in comedy shows at The Groundlings and the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre. It was here that Nasim first began gaining the traction to rise to the spotlight on some of the nation's biggest stages. She frequently performed her one-woman show "Me, Myself, and Iran" at the UCBTheatre and the Los Angeles division of ImprovOlympics. The show was then selected for the 2007 HBO Comedy Festival in Las Vegas.
Tina Fey, longtime SNL star, saw "Me, Myself, and Iran" and convinced Pedrad to audition for "Saturday Night Live."Nasim made her SNL debut in 2009 during the show's 35th season.
NasimPedrad is well known on "Saturday Night Live" for her wide variety of celebrity impressions, including Kathy Griffin, Shakira, Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, a flawlessly vapid Kim Kardashian, and even "Parks and Recreation" star Aziz Ansari. Pedrad has also put a unique stamp on the show with her quirky characters, including the underground rocker "Lil' Blaster" and the parent-loving Bedelia.
Besides working on "Saturday Night Live," Nasim did voice work for a number of characters in Hulu's animated comedy series "The Awesomes", a show about a new team of superheroes who step in to replace a legendary but retiring superhero group. "The Awesome" was created by "Saturday Night Live"'s longtime Weekend Update host Seth Meyers and features a number of other members of the SNL cast, including Bill Hader, Kenan Thompson, and TaranKillam. The series marks Hulu's second foray into original programming and has recently been renewed for a second season.
In addition to her work on SNL and "The Awesomes", Pedrad has guest starred in a variety of other shows, including "Gilmore Girls," "The Winner," and "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia."Nasim also had a run as the character Nurse Suri in the hit drama "ER" and as Val in the animated series "Allen Gregory." She was a writer for 2011's romantic comedy "No Strings Attached" and had a brief appearance in 2012's "The Dictator". Pedrad also did voice work for "The Lorax" and "Despicable Me 2".
Contact Jimmy Kemper at jkemper2@nd.edu
