For Molly Kearney, coming home to Cleveland is always going to mean a little more than simply returning to a familiar city. On Sunday, September 20, the Northeast Ohio native and SNL alum will bring that homecoming to the stage at Hilarities Fourth Street Theatre — a venue where they’ll perform for the first time despite having spent years honing their comedy just a short drive away.
Kearney’s path toward stand-up began in Northeast Ohio and continued during summers at Put-In-Bay, where Kearney worked an assortment of jobs while also developing their comedy chops at local open mics. Raised in a funny, close-knit family, they have often credited their parents, brothers and grandparents with helping shape their comedic instincts. That Cleveland-to-comedy trajectory eventually landed them a spot in Comedy Central’s Up Next showcase in 2019. Along the way, they also picked up acting credits in The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers and A League of Their Own. Then came the call that every comedian dreams about: In 2022, Kearney joined the cast of Saturday Night Live.
Now, with SNL behind them and the next chapter taking shape, Kearney is embracing the freedom that comes with being able to chart their own course. That includes finding the humor in an increasingly ridiculous world and, perhaps most importantly, giving audiences — and themselves — a chance to forget about the chaos for a little while. Because sometimes the best response to the world’s nonsense is simply to laugh at it, preferably with a room full of people doing the same.
Ahead of their Cleveland return, Kearney joined CleveRock via ZOOM to discuss their upcoming return to the place it all began.
“I love coming home,” Kearney confirmed. “I actually have never performed Hilarities, crazy enough. First time for everything! I’m very excited. I’ve got a big fam[ily] coming out and then random lovely Cleveland people! I think there’s a part of me that was a little scared because it’s my hometown, and I got over it. I think Cleveland is very community driven. It’s very Midwest; very welcoming. I come from a big family who all decided to stay in Cleveland, which is beautiful. Whenever I come home, it’s a big homecoming. I wish I could live in Cleveland every day, but yeah, I think Cleveland shapes a lot of my stand-up, of course. Homegrown comedy!”
In addition to family & friends gawking at their name on the marquee, this interviewer joked with Molly about any potential foes who might see “Tonight: Molly Kearney” above the prestigious comedy club that is Hilarities!
“There was one kid in college who was my enemy who didn’t want me on the improv team, but I don’t know where he is. I can’t even remember his name, but I don’t think he lives in Cleveland. He lives in Ohio somewhere, I think,” Kearney joked. “That’s enough revenge. All I need is my hard work. It’s all I need for revenge.”
While Kearney has a number of aforementioned top-notch screen credits, performing in clubs is a different experience. It’s visceral. The audience’s reaction is received in real-time. For them, there is nothing better!
“My first love has always been stand-up for sure,” Kearney said. “Without a doubt, it’s always stand-up. It’s an addiction. It’s like a healthy drug.”
As a longtime fan of stand-up and frequent attendee at comedy shows, the variety of comedic styles and topics addressed really runs the gamut. Kearney’s approach?
“I address personal experiences and things that happen to me. I love taking a little moment that has happened to me that I think is funny, and I stretch it out beat by beat and really take people along for a ride. I also am fortunate enough that my family gives me a lot of material. If I’m running low or need more inspiration, I just go home and visit the fam. I don’t stay away from anything. I think as long as you have a good point of view and a well-written joke, you can joke about anything. If it’s a joke, if it’s well written, I don’t fear any material. It’s all about respecting people, but if it’s a good joke and it’s well written, then it’s never going to disrespect anyone.”
The world can be a dark and difficult place. (Have you turned on the news lately?) Entertainment is the great escape. Musicians, comedians, professional athletes, and performers of all varieties can offer audiences a moment to forget about the world’s troubles and all the minutiae in the world. This isn’t lost on Molly!
“It means the world, but also I feel like I’m the lucky one. I’m the one who gets to escape while I’m up there,” Kearney said. “I had two shows last night in New York, and I’m like, ‘Wow, I’m in New York City!’ I get to ride a bike to the next spot and see people. The fact that people are still coming out to shows when the world is literally a living hell is a beautiful thing to see. It inspires me to do my best on stage, even to take a minute away from a stressful day, even at somebody’s job. They want to go to a comedy show, they want to smile and laugh. That’s my biggest goal, and I really think it’s an incredible duty to have on this planet.”
Saturday Night Live is arguably the Mount Everest for working comics hoping to land a television gig. It’s a long way to the topic, a grueling climb, but it also puts one at the top of the world! Kearney reflects on what it meant to them to earn the prestigious honor, and how it validated their talents and hard work.
“It came at the best time. I think if I got SNL any earlier that I would’ve been a little bit of a mess,” Kearney said, “I wouldn’t have focused and taken it as seriously if I didn’t get it when I got it. I remember I was 29, and I was like, ‘Okay, I’m going to give myself one more year if I don’t get anything career-wise, I’m going to go down another path,’ which I think a lot of people do, and I didn’t really even tell anyone that. I got Comedy Central’s New Faces. Two months after that, I got agents.. Two months after that, I auditioned for League of Their Own. Two years after that, I got SNL.”
I’ve had the privilege of speaking with close to a dozen performers and writers from Saturday Night Live over the course of my two decades in journalism. I am convinced beyond any doubt that SNL boss Lorne Michaels has an iron-clad NDA with severe penalties for offenders. I never hesitate to ask for a wild & crazy backstage story from the highly secretive SNL culture.
“I had a crazy year. I don’t know if it was the same season, but if it was different seasons, but I got to be on the cast when Travis Kelce hosted, which was awesome, because…. Cleveland! That was one of the most fun weeks ever,” Kearney shared. “Of course, we did a sketch where Andrew Dismukes wrote a sketch where me and him were motocross people and we had all the gear on, and Andrew was a museum guide. It was this beautiful set with fake dinosaurs and stuff. It got cut, because, of course it did, after dress rehearsal, but that was my favorite thing. That happened to me a lot, getting my sketch cut after dress, but that’s okay. It makes you into a badass bitch, that show, because you fail, and fail, and fail, and fail, and fail, and fail. After I left, I was like, ‘Nothing can hurt me.’ It’s an incredible experience. I also got to be on the show when Molly Shannon was there, who’s also from Cleveland, and Molly Shannon, and I have some weird ties. She knows my grandma well and my great aunt.”
On to their favorite behind the scenes moment?
“Lorne once told me that I looked beautiful because I was dressed as a woman with blonde hair. He was being dad-like. It wasn’t creepy. He was like, ‘You look very beautiful today.’ I’m like, ‘Lorne, you’re saying that because I look like a woman today.’ In the next sketch, I was a bald man, so what are you going to do? I’m grateful every day for that job. It’s crazy. You get put through a meat grinder, It’s wild.”
There’s an old adage: when one door closes, another door opens. Kearney ended up getting cast for CBS’ primetime show, DMV, one week after departing SNL.
“I got the audition, so I think you just got to believe in yourself and really just ride the wave. My agent told me the best advice when DMV got canceled, he’s like, ‘Molly, you’re a working actor. This is what happens. It’s always going to be fluctuating.’ That’s why I’m so happy that I started my career in stand-up because it’s never going to go away, and it’s always work. I’m my own boss and I can work whenever I want.”
As for why Northeast Ohioans should come out to Hilarities on Sunday, September 20 to celebrate a Browns’ victory (lol! jk) or more likely, mourn the second brutal loss of the season and drown their sorrows with some hearty laughs?
“Why don’t we top off that weekend with the Sunday evening show in Cleveland at Hilarities with Molly Kearney? It’s going to be awesome,” they said. “I’m going to make you laugh. I’m going to do as much crazy stuff on stage as I possibly can, and you’re going to leave with a big smile and you’re going to go, ‘Who is that person?’ You’re going to beg me to come back home, and I’m always going to come home. Come on to Hilarities on a Sunday night!”
Sold!
“Go Cavs! Go Browns! Go Guards,” Kearney added before signing off!
A true Clevelander, indeed.
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