Event showcases student, Columbia stand-up acts
Bey’s, a well-known bar in Five Points, held its third Comedy Night this Sunday for a packed audience.
Justin Thompson, a fourth-year psychology student, began Comedy Night in November. A comedian himself, Thompson got in touch with Bey’s through its booking agent, Alejandro Florez. And, although it is a relatively new endeavor for Bey’s, the event’s attendance is exponentially increasing. Sunday’s show packed the entire bar, with people vying for room to see the student acts.
The show was hosted by Thompson, who started off the night with his own stand-up routine, introducing each comedian with his own jokes and a bio in between acts.
He got into comedy about two years ago and has many friends who also perform. Noticing the lack of outlets for local comedians in the Columbia area, Thompson decided to create a way for those who wanted to do stand-up. Open to USC students as well as members of the surrounding community, Bey’s charges no admission for this event and allows for 18-and-up entry.
“These people are coming here for the love of comedy. That’s what brings us all here,” Thompson said.
The second comedian of the night, Chris Wooley, got laughs with a 10-minute round of self-deprecating jokes of dieting, his own redneck wedding and ex-girlfriend horror stories.
Other noted comedians who performed include USC’s own third-year media arts student Matt LaBorde, fourth-year management student Fabio Frey and fourth-year media arts student Joey Thompson. Frey and LaBorde, two of the 10 comedians who performed Sunday, are both longtime comedians and participate in SGTV’s DinoBrite Productions. They have both performed at previous Bey’s Comedy Nights.
The real show stealer, however, was first-timer Olivia Reburn, a fourth-year comparative literature student. Reburn’s candid attitude toward her daily life was both hilarious and refreshing.
Her jokes included tales of farting competitions she has with her siblings and a story about flushing tampons down the toilet in the apartment she lived in with her boyfriend and a roommate. After months of this flushing, the toilet eventually stopped up, and its contents covered the bathroom floor of their apartment, much to Reburn’s dismay. She closed with, “I think they were about ready to see me go after that one.”
It varies from night to night, but each comedian is allotted as much time as he or she wants. Beginners are usually allowed around five minutes on stage, while experienced comedians are given a much more flexible time range. The audience members are usually very receptive to the comedians, as many are friends of performers or performers themselves.
There will be at least two more comedy shows in the future, possibly in March and April, with summer shows in consideration as well.
Bey’s House of Ill Repute is located at 711 Harden St. near the intersection of Harden and Devine. To learn more about future comedy nights, follow Thompson on Twitter @justintee. Call Bey’s at 803-255-2996, or search Bey’s on Facebook for event updates.