Comedy Night at Frostburg!

Frostburg State University’s organizations kicked off this Fall 2014 semester strong with events like First Night Frostburg and the Made in the 90s party. One of the highlights of University Programming Council and Late @ Lane’s collaborative events for “Welcome Week” was their Comedy Night. On Friday, September 5, two hilarious comedians came to FSU: Gina Brillon, the spicy Brooklyn native, and DC Benny, the hysterical headlining performer.

Brillon and Benny helped lighten the mood of the hectic first week of the semester at FSU. It was nice to get a few good laughs in to mark the end of the first week of classes. After all of the first week’s tasks were taken care of – fixing mixed-up schedules, waiting in line to buy books that cost a fortune and taste-testing the new food at Moe’s – it was good to get an opportunity to sit down and be entertained. These comedians really were amazing; with their laid-back humor and racy jokes, they were able to create a relaxing, upbeat environment for students and kicked off the weekend the right way!

Brillon was the opening act, and she immediately snatched the crowd’s attention with crazy personal stories about her hometown, Brooklyn, New York City’s most populous borough. She had amazing confidence despite all of the embarrassing details she shared about herself. One thing that gained the crowd’s attention was her ongoing joke about her being a “foodie” and how buffets practically bring her to tears. Brillon progressed from silly jokes to some that were so true it was hilarious. She brought down the house with her depiction of a woman’s thought process versus a man’s – where women think almost excessively, but a man just… doesn’t. It was an incredible display of feminine confidence as well as a crazy amount of blunt humor!

Following Brillon was Benny, the headliner. He was equally as crazy and equally as funny, but he had a completely different approach that showed his experience in the stand-up comedy business and the natural talent he possesses. His reliance on audience participation didn’t show a lack of imagination like some competing comedians might comment, but allowed him to show the audience that they could control and participate in his show and he could still find a way to make it funny.

Benny started out by asking about Frostburg and making fun of the locals because of the rural area of the college’s location, but he was merely warming up. His humor was more adult than Brillon’s, which really had the audience losing it! He laughed and joked with them about their college lives and majors, making a very personal connection with them. He closed with a wild story about a special type of sushi he got from the market; the worker recommended it highly, insisting it would “enhance” his relationship with his wife… and it ultimately put him in the hospital. (You can fill in the blanks on that one!)

All in all, it was quite the show, and it was entertaining enough to leave the audience with a killer headache from all of their hysterical laughter and clapping!

Featured picture is credited to FSU Department of Student and Community Involvement.