Lounge lizards

Brian Sandford, The Santa Fe New Mexican
·1 min read

Dec. 30—The Faculty Lounge will perform twice on New Year's Eve, and anyone who attends both might find that the shows bear little in common. The improvisational group will perform back-to-back 90-minute shows, riffing off suggestions from audience members. Stand-up comedians Tripp Stelnicki and Josh Fournier are the featured guests, and champagne and cocktails will be sold.

If Stelnicki's name sounds familiar, it might be because he was Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham's communications director for three years, departing at the end of 2021. Fournier, born on Navajo Nation land near Farmington, states on his website that he loves addressing tensions between cultures. The Faculty Lounge is an offering of the nonprofit Stage Santa Fe, which, according to its website, considers improv to be about conquering fears and breaking down barriers, not merely generating laughter. It also offers improv workshops, including free ones from 2 to 4 p.m. Jan. 7 and Jan. 8 at Stage Santa Fe, 1202 Parkway Drive; visit stagesantafe.com.

7 and 9:15 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31, Jean Cocteau Cinema, 418 Montezuma Ave., 505-466-5528, jeancocteaucinema.com