A funny woman’s career takes flight

Growing up in Hewlett, actress and comedian, Robyn Schall had to wear leg braces and endure five hip surgeries after she was diagnosed with Perthes disease at 6-years-old, a condition resulting in a temporary loss of blood supply to the hip, but despite her struggle, she never lost her ability to make people laugh.

At an early age, Schall, 26, began performing and was very involved in theater at Hewlett High School. “Theater in Hewlett prepared me with acting skills that got me into a great college acting program,” she said. “It also showed me how much I love performing and how I need to spend my life making people laugh.”

Upon graduation from high school, Schall attended the University of Connecticut where she received a bachelor’s of Fine Arts in Acting. After college, she continued to go to auditions and her father, Ira, suggested she take a comedy class at Caroline’s, a comedy club in New York City.

“I know the entertainment field is risky but I think it’s something she has to do,” Ira said. “As a parent, it’s a beautiful thing to watch.”

Last February, Schall, now a Long Beach resident, enrolled in a six-week stand-up comedy program at Caroline’s where she met performer, Linda Smith, who taught the classes. Smith said she saw something in Schall during the first class and began guiding her, acting as her mentor.

“Robyn had never done comedy before,” said Smith, who thinks that Schall is very funny and creative and views her as a “Fran Drescher type.” “But I really saw something in her and you have to get behind the new talent.”

When the classes ended, Schall continued to work with Smith to perfect her stand-up act. “Linda helped me book shows and she’s been my motivator,” Schall said. “From the day I met her she said it doesn’t matter how funny you are, you have to have the “it” factor and work hard.”

Schall’s brother, Richie, missed her first show, but saw the video and couldn’t stop laughing. He had just moved back to Hewlett from Los Angeles where he had been a casting editor for game shows. Richie told his sister she had something and offered to be her manager.