Actor and writer Ellie Kemper will speak at Vanderbilt University’s Langford Auditorium on Tuesday, April 14. The event begins at 7 p.m. and is being co-sponsored by the Vanderbilt Speakers Committee and VenUe Committee.
Tickets are now on sale at the Sarratt Student Center box office, all Ticketmaster outlets, online at ticketmaster.com and by phone at 1-800-745-3000. Tickets are free for Vanderbilt students and staff, $5 for non-Vanderbilt students, and $10 for the general public.
Kemper got her big acting break when she landed the part of Erin Hannon on NBC’s The Office, playing the role for four seasons. She also has appeared in the films Bridesmaids, 21 Jump Street, Laggies and Sex Tape.
She currently plays the title role of Kimmy Schmidt on the critically acclaimed Netflix comedy series Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, created by Tina Fey and Robert Carlock. Kemper also voices the character “Crackle” on the Disney Channel animated series Sofia the First.
Originally from St. Louis, Kemper attended Princeton University, where she was a member of Princeton’s national championship field hockey team, the campus improvisation group Quipfire! and the musical theater group Triangle. After graduation, she spent a year at Oxford University pursuing graduate studies in English literature.
After moving to New York, Kemper studied improv at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre and Peoples Improv Theater. She interned for a year at Late Night with Conan O’Brien, appearing in sketches on the show, as well as in a number of national television commercials. She served as a contributing writer for The Onion and for the literary journal McSweeney’s.
Contact: Bridgette Kohnhorst, (615) 322-2471
bridgette.kohnhorst@vanderbilt.edu