Not that many years ago, locals would have had to travel to New York City to see a Jefferson Township native debut her series of comedy sketches in a theater.

Luckily, anyone who wants to take in the “BOATS” (Based on a True Story) show being coproduced by Tessa Flannery on Tuesday, Jan. 23 can easily view it via a livestream.

Flannery, who is now a resident of Brooklyn. New York City, has come a long way since winning the talent portion of the Butler County Junior Miss competition and graduating from Knoch High School in 2004.

But she never lost her desire to be a comedian.

“That’s what I always wanted to do when I was in high school, but I got to college and wanted to be taken seriously, so I started doing Shakespeare,” Flannery said.

She explained that after graduating from Knoch, she attended college in Scotland, then came back to Butler County. She then moved to New York City in 2012.

Because Flannery didn’t have what she calls “the classic actress look,” she eventually moved away from serious acting and embraced her old friend, comedy.

She soon found an improv group at a theater in New York City called the Magnet.

“I realized this is really where I’m meant to be,” Flannery said.

Because the Magnet does not have the capability to stream shows, Flannery and her group of actors and writers will perform “BOATS” at Caveat on Manhattan’s Lower East Side.

The venue’s website describes it as “a cabaret comedy theater located deep under Clinton Street. We champion nerdy, funny art — and sell cheap drinks.”

“Caveat is a basement bar fitted with a stage and a three-camera setup,” Flannery said. “It would almost be like watching an episode of Carol Burnett.”

Flannery is coproducing “BOATS” with her fellow comedy writer, Lenee’ Sanders, who is currently a writer for The Daily Show.

After getting the idea to do a comedy show of some sort, the friends each wrote five to 10 sketches based on true stories from their lives.

They picked the ones they liked best, punched them up, and “BOATS” was born.

The 1.5-hour show will include more than a dozen semibiographical sketches written by Flannery and Sanders, plus Jordan Randolph, who will direct.

Flannery and Sanders appear in each vignette in the production. Other cast members are Max Ross, Michael Stevens and Carolyn Castro.

“Every sketch in the show is based on something real that happened to us,” Flannery said. “There’s a lot of embarrassing preteen things in there.”

Flannery, Sanders and Randolph made sure they didn’t sugarcoat the events in the sketches, and even embellished on what could have occurred in each scenario.

“We based it on the real things that happened and turned them to be the most silly, outrageous and sometimes grotesque that they could be,” she said.

Flannery counts among her comedy heroes two modern women who are Saturday Night Live alumni.

“I really love Kate McKinnon,” she said. “She is so funny.”

She has met other comedy icons on the set of The Daily Show, which she has visited as Sander’s guest.

“I got to see Leslie Jones there,” Flannery said. “She was so wonderful and so warm and so funny, and she was very inspirational, too.”

Recalling the influences of her high school days, Flannery named former music teacher Jamie Schweinberg as an unforgettable educator.

“He was really funny,” she said.

Given her current success, no one would imagine that Flannery was not a shoo-in for every production at Knoch High.

“I auditioned every year for the plays and musicals,” Flannery said. “It took me six auditions to even get in.”

She said the situation resulted in an important life lesson that has served her well, especially in the uncertain world of show business.

“I probably learned how to put my head down and keep going,” Flannery said. “Especially when I’m producing my own work, I’ve got to have that sense.”

She said her parents, Pam and Shawn Flannery, still live in Jefferson Township. Flannery and her siblings, Megan, Evan and Mara, have collaborated in comedy videos and musicals or plays at home or on YouTube.

“Megan is active at Butler Little Theatre and Musical Theater Guild,” Flannery said. “We’ve had really great times working together.”

Flannery said while some parents would turn their noses up at their offspring chasing a career in comedy, the opposite has been the case for her.

“They have always been so supportive,” she said of her parents. “They have always been like ‘Go for it. Do whatever you want to do.’”

While Flannery will continue her day jobs of teaching public speaking and theater at Borough of Manhattan Community College, doing voice-over work, commercials and audiobooks, and occasionally producing for podcasts, she dreams of a day when she will be employed as a head writer or other show business position.

“I’d probably be a show runner somewhere and run a show that I wrote and that’s my baby,” she said.

How to watch comedy show co-produced by Knoch grad

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The show will be performed at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 23 in a venue on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, but locals can enjoy the comedy skills of 2004 Knoch High School graduate Tessa Flannery without making a trip to New York City.

“BOATS”(Based on a True Story), which is a series of more than a dozen comedy sketches gleaned from the lives of Flannery, her co-producer, Lenee’ Sanders and director Michael Stevens, will be livestreamed as it is performed.

The show also will be available for viewing for one week after the production.

Those interested in watching “BOATS” online can purchase a streaming ticket at eventbrite.com/e/boats-tickets-777086485597.