Whether touring the country or performing on the Late Show with David Letterman, there is one thing comedians Joe Matarese and Erik Rivera have in common: Boston University students make them feel at home.
“It was an awesome show, good crowd,” Matarese said after performing his routine at BU Central. “The best show I’ve had in six months.”
Matarese took the cake — and the stage — in the latest installment of the BU LOL Comedy Series last night alongside opening act Rivera. More than 120 students remained engaged throughout his hour-long stand-up routine, which included autobiographical material about dating, family, school and personal phone calls.
Rivera’s material took a more conversational approach to winning audience giggles, poking fun at his own Spanish heritage and common racial stereotypes, enhanced with his various accents and imitations.
“My favorite part is when I’m really connecting with the crowd, when we are really in sync and things are just flowing out of my mouth.” Rivera said.
Matarese said he has been performing stand-up for about 18 years, while Rivera said he has only had about 6 years’ practice in the comedic field. Both regularly perform in New York, in addition to other travels.
Rivera typically performs on college campuses, while Matarese performs at only about 10 colleges each year, but said he enjoys the audience the young environment draws.
“Students are usually very attentive and out to have a good time,” Rivera said. “I can relate to them better because of the closeness in age.”
During the show, Matarese did ongoing imitations of Sylvester Stallone and repeatedly threw out the punch line, “It was really a Rocky story.” He heavily interacted with the audience, incorporating conversations with students into his routine, which proved to be a popular technique.
Event coordinator Rachel Richmond, a College of Communication sophomore, said comedy nights are the most popular BU Central events among students, in part because they are well advertised.
For both comedians and students alike — all jokes aside — the LOL series proved another success for BU Central.
“I would definitely come back,” Matarese said. “I had a great time.”