Remember the comedian who performed on June 29? That’s right, you probably don’t. If you were like the majority of Sean Patton’s audience that night, you walked out 20 minutes into his standup routine.
I’m pleased to say that a month later, however, it appears FAU’s Summer Splash program has made a drastic improvement.
At 8:44 Friday evening, the crowd started compiling amidst the DJ’s hip-hop and the perfume of artificial butter coating the Oak Pavilion. Saying comedian Jay Phillips was impressed by FAU grounds would be massively understated. “The campus is incredible,” he said. “Looking like Sandals Resort out here. I don’t know how you all learn. Good stuff”.
At 9 p.m. on the dot, Phillips walked into a packed room of diverse students, who were soon bellowing with laughter. His bits ranged from commentary on the Olympics to spot-on impersonations of Michael Jackson and even Barack Obama.
Phillips also weaved in the college anecdotes we all knew were coming. From the trials and tribulations of living coed and trying to masturbate quietly to his careful tiptoeing around mentioning marijuana by name — “I’m on a college campus and I haven’t gotten my check yet” — Jay Phillips’ performance felt like a complete success with an audience of filled chairs and even some students standing in the back.
“Stereotypes are funny,” Phillips declared at one point. He proceeded to spit out juxtapositions between thugs and rednecks that had many short of breath from laughing so hard.
By the close of the evening, you could feel the crowd (approximately 225 people) grow dismal as Phillips stated “your comedy minutes are almost up.” He closed his show nostalgically, however, reminding the students that in college there is always “good and bad. There are some assholes, but…enjoy the journey.”
After the show, the reviews glowed: “It was really great,” Brianna Johnson said, a freshman majoring in pre-nursing. “I loved the whole thing.”
It’s safe to say the night was a proud moment for Program Board Director, Lexi Rosario, a sophomore finance major. “This was a lot better,” she said. “The turnout was better. Everyone had a good time.”
Rosario said she was pleased because this was the first event run by the school’s new Media Committee. Previous events such as the last standup act didn’t have a board to select the entertainment, resulting in a show Rosario wanted to forget.
However, this summer event was different — full of music, socialization, popcorn, cherry snow cones, and, most importantly, ample laughter.
Summer Splash events continue from now until Aug. 5 including events such as Boot Camp and Movie Night.
