Roasting newsmakers at Wichita’s Gridiron show

The closest thing Wichita has to a local “Saturday Night Live” skit is this weekend’s Gridiron show, a musical parody of local and national news and newsmakers put on by local media personalities. Among the local subjects being spoofed this year: Louie the Clown, Gov. Sam Brownback and a rodent that roamed away from his zoo. And on the national level: Bruce Jenner and a coffee shop that tries to politically engage its customers. Indoor pyrotechnics will be part of the fun.

Bonnie Bing, Tommy Castor of 96.3 FM, Bucky Walters, Careth Beard of B98 FM, and Ted Woodward of 1330 AM will be among the performers singing, dancing and skewering.

Shows are at 8 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday at the Orpheum. Twisted Confections will give a bierock to each audience member at Friday’s show, and the Monarch will give out a treat on Saturday night. There also will be a cash bar. Tickets are $24 to $32, at Select-A-Seat outlets, 316-755-7328 and www.selectaseat.com. Proceeds go to scholarships for journalism students.

The Kansas Pro Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists puts on the longest consecutive running gridiron in the country, going since 1968 and modeled on the Washington Gridiron show. More information: www.wichitagridiron.com.

Annie Calovich

This story was originally published April 16, 2015 at 11:39 AM with the headline "Roasting newsmakers at Wichita’s Gridiron show."