On Thursday, Sept. 4 Student Involvement and Development organized an event with comedian Eric Schwartz inside the Washburn A/B Memorial Union where he delivered a performance packed with musical comedy, physical antics, multicultural satire and sharp social commentary.
Schwartz goes beyond traditional comedy with his undeniably entertaining mix of standup, music and multimedia. His second one hour comedy special, “Delivery” is a nonstop tour de force of comedic entertainment.
Schwartz shared the inspiration behind his journey into comedy, starting from his early experiences as a DJ.
“I’ve always been a DJ since I was 14 years old,” Schwartz said. “I spent my Bar Mitzvah money on DJ equipment and so it kind of naturally evolved into comedy.. I was on the microphone making people laugh when I started doing stand up. My friends encouraged me and they said, ‘You’re so funny. You should do stand up.’ And so I’ve always incorporated some kind of musical element.”
In a viral video, he has racked up over 100 million views on his stand up clips, music, video and sketches.
Gracie Hollon, sophomore sport management and kinesiology major, appreciated the mix of music and comedy that enhanced the storytelling and praised Eric’s energetic performance and interactive style.
“It was really good,” Hollon said. “I wish more people came, because he actually was quite hilarious and very interactive.. Honestly, for myself, I like music a lot and I’ve been in music for so long, it just kind of intensified like the storytelling or maybe the joke, so it actually made me laugh more than …. like a little chuckle.”
Schwartz shared what motivated him to become a comedian and talked about his feelings and passion for comedy.
“It’s kind of been like what I’ve done since I was a little kid. I would entertain my family and I just love the feeling that I get when people feel when people are able to laugh. I just love the feeling that it gives me that I like accomplishing something, that I shift somebody’s mood,” Schwartz said.
Reagan Staggs, freshman exploratory major, shared her experience in the event.
“That was pretty good. You know there were some points where he was talking about how there were 20 people here,” Staggs said. “So it was kind of funny. There was the lack of people. But I thought it was funny overall.”
Schwartz motivated the young youth.
“Well, with anything, you have to practice it. You have to find a place to get on stage. You have to find opportunities to perform. If there aren’t any in your town, you have to make them. That’s what I did when I was in college,” Schwartz said.
Edited by Bidhya Sapkota and Anushma Dahal
