News

October 11, 2013

Cracking Up or Not?

By D’Mone’ Clendinen



Carlie & Doni are taking the fresh faced comedy scene by storm

The last comedic performance, Carlie and Doni, shook Reeves Theatre with their musical comedy act on September 11, produced by UT Student Productions. The room was jam-packed; laughter was seeping through the cracks under the door. They poked fun about the struggles of women in life and being in college. The line-up this year promises more laugher, however, many students think that the acts brought to perform could be better. Some are looking for an opportunity for input.

            An unofficial survey rating comedy performances at UT was conducted.  About 70% of the 15 students questioned rated the acts as low. When asked why, the most common answer was that they felt that the acts aren’t advertised enough, corny, and do not appeal to a majority of the student body. It is hard to appeal to everyone, but they wonder how acts are supposed to excel if students cannot put in their two cents to decide?

            Comedians are chosen by members of Student Productions who attend an annual conference for the National Association for Campus Activities (NACA). Performers display their talents for the attendees live. Then the attendees decide on which act will raise the roof. Of course they have a budget, and that affects who they can book.

While UT does not have established rules governing selections, members attending the NACA must also consider the content of the act. Marketing Chair Katie Drake said, “We watch their performance beforehand at NACA, so we know what to expect when they come to UT.”

However, some students think that this is a university and that we are all adults; there should be no limits.

While this is true, some comedians are unpredictable, so what happens if one dares to be bold and crosses the line? According to Drake, so far this hasn’t been a problem, but if the act becomes offensive, they will not hesitate to pump the brakes on the show.

Sammy Obeid making his statement.

However, you can be the judge if you attend the next comedy performance on October 16 at 8pm in Reeves Theatre by Sammy Obeid. He was recently featured on Conan after he performed his 1001^st consecutive night of performing standup in San Francisco, California. His acts can be viewed on www.sammyko.com.

 There is another act in November. Jamie Lee is one of the women from MTV’s GirlCode. So look out for the flyers because it will definitely be a show that will crack you up. Visit www.utstudentproductions.com to learn more about the upcoming performers.