BY MATTHEW WIELK
Staff Reporter
Can you imagine being able to see both Drake Bell and Josh Peck in the span of a single year?
Sophomore Ashley Gerckens said, “I would feel pretty happy because I grew up watching ‘Drake & Josh,’ so having the chance to see them both in the same year would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!”
Earlier this year, the Sacred Heart University Students Events Team hosted Peck for a Comedy Q&A in the Edgerton Center for the Performing Arts. With a sold-out show, many students were excited and eager to see their favorite childhood celebrity come to campus.
Now, just months later, Peck’s other half and former “Drake & Josh” co-star, Drake Bell, is going to be in the area. Bell will be performing a concert this Friday, Sept. 21, at Toad’s Place in New Haven, Conn.
Gerckens added, “I enjoyed listening to Josh Peck last year when he came to SHU because he is such a comical person. He knows how to make his audience laugh and have fun. I actually had the opportunity to have a conversation with Josh and ask him a question. The fact that I was able to talk to Josh having grown up watching ‘Drake & Josh’ on TV would definitely make me interested in seeing Drake this month at Toad’s!”
“I feel like my childhood dreams are coming true by being able to see the cast of my favorite TV show,” said junior Emily Durvin. “Seeing Josh at Sacred Heart and the fact that Drake is going to Toad’s pieces together memories of watching Nickelodeon.”
One student in particular, junior Anthony Smith, had an especially unique experience during Peck’s Q&A. Smith was on stage with Peck, giving the interview and facilitating the comedy evening.
When asked if he would want to see Bell as well, Smith said, “Of course! Who wouldn’t want Drake and Josh back together live in action? But then again, both have their own careers and are on their own paths, and I respect that.”
Smith then recalled his experience with interviewing Peck, saying, “Interviewing Josh Peck was hands down one of the greatest experiences of my life . . . Josh was down-to-earth and the same guy backstage that the students saw onstage.”
However, senior Kylie Roberts believes that the location and lack of advertisement may affect how many students actually go to the concert.
Roberts said, “I don’t think many students heard about it and the people I asked were not even interested. I feel like no one is going to want to drive to New Haven to see Drake Bell. I mean, I saw Josh Peck last year but that was easy because it was right on campus.”
Like Roberts, junior Dylan Molster says he also did not hear anything about the show and does not think he would attend – even if he had advanced notice.
“I had know clue Drake Bell was coming to Toad’s Place. Even if I had heard about it I probably wouldn’t go anyway,” said Molster, “The last time I heard a song from him was when ‘Drake & Josh’ was still on air and back then I still couldn’t name any of his music.”
The reaction from the student body on Drake’s upcoming performance is certainly varied. But many students – including junior Laura Green – recognize the fact that Bell’s and Peck’s visits to Connecticut are coincidentally close to each other.
Green states, “I think it’s pretty cool that their show is off the air and that the two of them are both able to make it to Connecticut.”