MKA Upper School Hosts Special Hemmeter Lecture with Stephen Colbert

On January 11, the Upper School hosted a very special Hemmeter Lecture event, a conversation with Stephen Colbert conducted by David Hessler, longtime MKA History Department member. Mr. Colbert offered humor and intellectual depth to an audience that included close to 150 Upper School students. Indira Douglas '19 shared that "Having just completed an English course on Satire, it was particularly meaningful for me to hear his insight on his experience in the industry and the thought process behind how he pushes the boundaries of satire."

Mr. Colbert answered questions and shared stories from throughout his life. While Jennifer Shan '19 anticipated the "interview and Q&A to be an extension of his show," she found she was, "Pleasantly surprised to find the lecture to be informative about not only his career in comedy but also his academic, more 'nerdy' side. Who knew that he's interested in etymology or is doing a page-by-page analysis of the Lord of the Rings series? ...To me, somebody who never plans on becoming a comic, I saw the entire lecture as an opportunity to learn more about the nature of being a public figure." Throughout the evening, Mr. Colbert's honesty, enthusiasm, and breadth of knowledge were on full view and all attendees were gifted with learning as well as a lot of laughs.

You can read more about the lecture event via an article in the Academy News, MKA's Upper School Student Newspaper.