Slow Children Crossing
Slow Children Crossing is an African-American sketch comedy group formed in 2006, consisting of comedians and actors Brett Butler, Alem Sapp, Saudia Rashed, Tiffany Thomas and Destini Meshack.
Composed of three women and two men, this band of humorous individuals are influenced by Eddie Murphy, Richard Pryor, Dave Chappelle, SNL and Benny Hill. They are sometimes described as "Kids in the Hall" meets "In Living Color".
History
Before the troupe formed, Brett Butler a veteran of the New York sketch comedy scene was fresh off his stint from “Sealab: 2021”, the Adult Swim cartoon.
He was looking for a new vehicle, though he admits that when he decided to relocate to Los Angeles he had no idea what kind of cohorts would sign on to his experiment. He hooked up with a drinking buddy Alem Brhan Sapp, who also happened to be a veteran of stage and film, appearing in major productions including Law & Order, All My Children, Pootie Tang, How High and The Royal Tenenbaums. Together they placed an Ad on Craigslist and met up with Destini Meshack (BET’s “Played by Fame”), Saudia Rashed (“The New Guy”), a professional dancer looking to stretch her comedic skills and Tiffany Thomas (“The Boondocks”).
The name of the group was conceived at the very first rehearsal when a friend said she would never want to see comedy from a group with a weird name like "Slow Children Crossing." Her comment immediately inspired the cast members to gravitate towards it.
SCC began with spot dates along L.A’s theatre row - and it wasn’t long before Comedy Central invited them to perform to a sold out show at the popular “Comedy Central Stage” in March 2008 at the Hudson in Los Angeles.
Comedy Festivals
- Out of Bounds Festival 2009 (Austin, Texas)
SketchFest Comedy Festival 2008 & 2009 (Seattle, Washington)
Chicago Sketch Comedy Festival 2009 (Chicago, Illinois)
Montreal Sketch Festival 2009 (Montreal, Canada)
Los Angeles Sketch Comedy Festival 2008 (Los Angeles, California)
Improv Olympic West Sketch Competition 2008 (Los Angeles, California)
Recurring sketches and characters
- Black Ken
- Chronicles the lives of the cast member’s childhood toys in their adult lives. Tiffany Thomas plays “Barbie”, Saudia Rashed plays “Christie” (Black Barbie) and Brett Butler plays “He-Man.”