Up-and-coming USC stand-up comedians took the Russell House Theater stage Monday night for Carolina Production’s Student Comedy Competition.
Third-year media arts student Matthew LaBorde took home first place for the night, with first-year business management student Brian Phillips winning second and second-year political science student Max Lasser coming in third.
Comedy Central’s Pete Lee hosted the evening for the second year in a row, opening with an absolutely hilarious 15-minute set, poking fun at his brittle bones, Conan O’Brien interview skills and his striking resemblance to the red Angry Bird.
Matt Nienhaus, a fourth-year marine science student, was the first contestant of the night, opening with a dance lesson for college males. His lesson highlighted the importance of using alcohol in your moves and taking cues from all of the hottest club hits.
Fourth-year psychology student Justin Thompson took the stage by storm, shocking the audience members with his rather profane set, asking if they’ve ever been late from either jacking off or getting high.
Referring to himself as a “cannabis enthusiast,” he joked, “I lied to a homeless man lately and told him I didn’t have change. Does that mean I’m a Republican now?”
Keeping the themes of the night running, second-year film studies student Jake Cambron gave a shout-out to his mom in the audience, while joking about his unevenly sized testicles. He continued to attribute his discovery of masturbation to his mother, who remained in the audience.
First-year theatre student Swann Perisse, arriving at USC from France in August, filled her act with the most literal interpretations of American dance songs like “Cupid Shuffle” by Cupid and “Get Low” by Lil Jon, ending simply with, “I’m perfect.”
Lee summed it up with, “She is the crepe of comedy.”
Third-year history student Michael Witherspoon gave the audience a preview of Carolina football with “Dr. Lou,” launching into his best Lou Holtz impression.
Phillips introduced his idea for cat roulette, “a place for cats to come together to masturbate.”
Tanner Crum, a second-year public relations student, prepped for his act with some quick calisthenics, setting it up with,
“I love Asian food,” going on to joke that “touch-screen phones are the worst thing to happen to self-esteem since the idea that being fat was unattractive.”
And, Lasser followed up with a “nerdy” act centered on zebra cakes, Harry Potter and Michael Phelps.
Veteran to the comedy competition, second-year theatre student William Woody started off with self-deprecating fat jokes, and LaBorde closed out the competition, making jokes about indie flick “Madea Goes to Jail 2,” offering a fun fact: “South Carolina’s No. 1 is cutting educational funding.”
Three student judges and audience text voting chose the winner of the 12 contestants for the night’s competition, with each act pulling a different kind of humor.