Saturday night marked the 10th annual Student Association Comedy Series. From Patton Oswalt to Louis C.K., SA usually attracts talented comedians for the Comedy Series.
SA continued this tradition by inviting B.J. Novak. To give a change of pace, SA held the show at Alumni Arena rather than at the Center for the Arts, where it usually takes place.
While some people might have seen Novak's stand-up before, he is best known as Ryan from The Office. Not only is he one of the stars of the show, but he is also a writer. His quick wit and great wordplay has propelled The Office into the hearts of Americans.
The show garnered its fame and success from the connections between its cast members. This is not a random occurrence, according to Novak.
"People do gravitate toward the same sense of humor; it's an immediate way to connect with a person," Novak said. "Certainly, on our show, we can learn if someone will be a good match for us as much from a conversation as from an audition or a writing sample. We are looking for a kinship, a similar sense of humor."
Novak has even had his hand in directing a few episodes of the show, but out of acting, directing, and writing, he prefers the latter.
"I love them all for different reasons, which is the lamest possible answer to any question. I am most myself when I'm writing," Novak said. "Acting is a better gig. You get much more attention, and you get many more laughs without all the work.
"Directing, I would compare it to going to a video arcade when you're a kid and you don't have quarters and the game is kind of playing itself, so you jump on the joystick and pretend you're playing. That's what directing is like on our show, in a way, because all the actors are so talented, they know what they are doing, and they have been doing it for years. Writing is the hardest and the most rewarding of those three things."
While it was Novak's first trip to Buffalo, he understood that winter doesn't get out of Buffalo's system until May. As he took to the stage Saturday night, Novak was layered in a big puffy coat and thick gloves.
Novak's clever wordplay blossomed while he was attending Harvard. As he describes it, his experience at Harvard was the polar opposite of UB.
"I read a lot of books, few of them I remember. It was really about reading. It wasn't a social life experience so much as I think a lot of other schools are, although I did have great friends," Novak said. "It was a lot of reading and dreaming of what I would try to do one day as a writer."
While he was on stage, Novak tried out new material, giving the audience a chance to tell him what jokes to save and what jokes to toss. While the thought was ingenious, the lack of crowd participation hindered its effectiveness.
It was apparent on stage that Novak is more suited for comedy writing than stand-up. While his wordplay caused people to chuckle, his delivery of the jokes was flat, resulting in nothing more than a few quick laughs.
Novak accredits Quentin Tarantino as one of his biggest influence when it comes to his writing. That made being on set for Inglorious Basterds a dream come true.
"That was the most exciting experience of my life, quite simply. It's why I always wanted to be a writer, really, was seeing his movies. I have never been so intimidated, excited, [or] entertained than being on set of a Quentin Tarantino movie, that I was somehow a part of," Novak said. "It was unbelievable. It felt to me that I had climbed into a history book, and yet, while that sounds like the most boring experience in the world, it was the most exciting."
Opening for Novak was UB Improv. Their rambunctious shenanigans garnered a few well-deserved laughs, but their faulty equipment made them hard to hear and left the audience confused about what was happening in the sketches.
If you missed B.J. Novak, you'll have to wait until next year and see who SA brings to follow up this year's event.
Email: arts@ubspectrum.com
