How Stonehill shaped Mike Lemme’s path from trauma to comedy

By Kaya DeAngelis

When Mike Lemme reflects on his career as a comedian, playwright, producer, and director, he credits Stonehill College for opening the right doors for him.  

“There’s no way I would be where I am today without my time at Stonehill,” Lemme said, “Because Stonehill gave me access to New York, it gave me access to LA.”  

During his fall semester of his junior year, he interned in New York City for Jimmy Fallon. A year later, he interned in Los Angeles for Conan O’Brien.  

 “They were both super different experiences,” he said, “but Conan was my favorite because I grew up watching Conan.”  

Lemme graduated from Stonehill in 2012. A Chicopee native, he majored in communications with a minor in sociology. However, his first love was always stand-up comedy.  

“I’ve been doing stand up for more years of my life than I haven’t been,” he said, “stand up is everything.”  

Lemme began doing stand-up comedy at 14 in Western Massachusetts and in Boston. While at Stonehill, he held a monthly “Late Night” style talk show at the Hill, and even hosted some comedy nights in Corr his freshman year. 

“It was so silly,” he said, “but I took it so seriously.”  

Despite being known for his comedy, he never told his friends in college about the event that sparked his involvement in stand-up. 

 When he was 9 years old, he watched a close family relative attempt to commit suicide.  

“I had a really traumatic childhood,” he said, “but there’s something about getting on stage and talking to strangers that helps you process it.”  

He’s performed standup in London, Paris, and Rome. His favorite experience abroad though, was the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in Scotland, the largest arts festival in the world which is held every August.  

“That’s where Fleabag started, Baby Reindeer, the musical SIX… everyone gets their start there,” he said.  

So naturally, when Lemme created and produced his first one-man show, Bathroom of a Bar on Bleecker, he took it to Scotland.   

He said the whole thing was messy. 

“We had a bad time slot, bad venue, bad poster…” he said, “still got a five-star review though, I mean, and the actor is incredible, so I do still love that show.”  

He said that the show could have done much better if I he knew how to produce it, and he wanted to return to Edinburgh eventually with something new.  

So, when he met actress and comedian Maria DeCotis while performing stand-up in New York City, he knew he wanted to create a character for her.  

“I thought I could write a character for Maria to bring to life on stage,” he said.  

Thus, Before the Drugs Kick In was born. It is Lemme’s second one-man (woman) show.  

Before the Drugs Kick In tells the story of a 62-year-old woman in an insane asylum who finds herself performing a stand-up routine to the audience, all of whom are a product of her delusions.  

“I created this show with the idea like, what if this person from my childhood had the luxury of doing stand-up like I had,” he said, “instead of feeling isolated and alone.”  

He credited DeCotis for bringing the show to life.  

“The show does not exist without her,” he said.  

Maria played a big role in creating the show and the character, Lynn, who Lemme said is inspired by his family member. 

He brought the show to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2023, where he said he “fixed the mistakes” from the year before. 

“We were on a busy street, with a lot of foot traffic, at 1 o’clock in the afternoon, with a beautiful poster,” he said, “and I learned all of that because of what we went through with Bathroom of a Bar on Bleecker.”  

They received nominations for two of the biggest awards at the Festival: the BBC Writersroom Popcorn Award for Best New Writing and the Mental Health Foundation Fringe Award.  

Before the Drugs Kick In recently wrapped its fourth New York City extension, with runs in LA and London.  

They are also working towards creating a TV series, similar to Baby Reindeer, based on the play.  

They plan to film the pilot in the spring. Lemme said they wanted to film in December, but they didn’t have the funding.   

“The biggest pushback comes from the industry not realizing how successful this can be,” he said. He said that famous names bring in sponsors, something that the show has struggled to get.  

However, they have Emmy-award winning director Jennifer Stafford joining the team for the pilot, so Lemme is hopeful to see that garner new interest.  

He said that right now, preparing to film the pilot of Before the Drugs Kick In takes up most of his time. However, stand-up remains center in his plans.   

“If I can find a way to build an audience with Before the Drugs Kick In,” he said, “then those people are more likely to come see me do stand-up later on.”  

Lemme said that moving to New York and committing to his own stand-up journey motivated him to be independent.  

“I realized that anything is possible if you believe in what you’re doing,” he said.  

His advice to future Stonehill graduates was simple: “don’t wait for someone to give you an opportunity… write your own story.”