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    'A Black Lady Sketch Show' takes lots of improv and holding back laughs, its creator says

    by Lorraine Ali, Los Angeles Times May 15, 2023 6 minutes
    Robin Thede as the character Dr. Hadassah Olayinka Ali-Youngman, pre-Ph.D., in a "Black Lady Sketch Show." The HBO series is now in its fourth season.

    There is no show on television quite like "A Black Lady Sketch Show." Now in its fourth season, Robin Thede's fearless comedy series slices and dices pop culture, race issues, dating woes, feminism, religion and more into 30-minute blasts of fantastically twisted humor.

    Co-executive produced by Issa Rae, the show is renowned for pushing the boundaries of the absurd with its cast of featured players Gabrielle Dennis, Skye Townsend, Tamara Jade, DaMya Gurley and Angel Laketa Moore. The show also features weekly guest stars including Rae, Angela Bassett, Sam Richardson and Tracee Ellis Ross. Airing weekly, the new season expands upon the madness with such eloquently titled episodes as "Peek-a-Boob, Your Titty's Out." We spoke with Thede, television's first Black woman director and Black female head writer of a sketch comedy show, about what it takes to bring the show and its litany of characters to life. (One note: This interview took place several weeks before the writers' strike.)

    Q: Thank you for your willingness to break down the anatomy of a sketch, or several sketches.

    A: I will talk about any sketch

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