Black Brings Back Anger in Socially Charged Alma Mater Show

Lewis Black
George Watts Hill Alumni Center

Straight from the horse's mouth, comedian Lewis Black summed up his act in short: "What I have to say will make your ass clench a little."

But Black doesn't go out of his way to be vulgar or offensive, nor does he take sides in the issues discussed -- he simply speaks his interpretation of the truth. If anyone finds his commentary unpalatably hostile, it's because a lot of the world actually is that ridiculous.

So Black turns to just the right audience -- college students. On Saturday night, satirical cynicism went down at the George Watts Hill Alumni Center. And as always, the applause for his humor was matched by the applause for his rational common sense.

Black humbly took the stage to the cheering of a relatively small yet receptive audience, saying in a sedate voice that it's all the more amusing when you know of the fervor that he has in store. "Let's try to calm down," he said.

He then launched into anger-fueled commentary that began here at UNC, his alma mater.

Black touched on the monstrosities that are the "new" smoke-stacked science buildings, the redundancy of the food at the Rathskeller and the absurdity of criticizing an institution of public learning for assigning readings on the Quran.

Next on his hit list was Halloween, divided into three primary targets -- adults who dress up, the stench of pumpkins and the disgusting, yet irresistible, candy corn. But he was grateful that this Halloween season isn't as hot as the fall of 2001.

"The leaves didn't even change color," he said. "They just got sweaty and fell off the tree."

And of course, no comedy act would be complete without commenting on national events.

He criticized the absurd excess of our money-obsessed culture, mentioning a $15,000 umbrella stand. "What do you think it was made out of?" he exclaimed. "Martha Stewart's vagina?!"

But you cannot listen to Black's words and absorb the humor without the gravity.

Winding down, Black's comedy took on increasingly powerful meaning. His problem with the world today is that it lacks a sense of humor. Should America succumb to this fault, we'd become no different than the terrorists we battle.

"These are people who wandered the desert for thousands of years and never ran into a knock-knock joke," he explained in ironically somber tone. "That's the price you pay for living in tents."

Although Saturday's act reflected a bit too much of his show here last February and his edge was toned down for a greater percentage of alumni in attendance, his scathing humor never fails to entertain. He draws laughter with his mere mannerisms and tone of voice alone.

He exited the Alumni Center modestly, almost disappointing in its abruptness. But on the other hand, he is all the more respectable for his lack of theatrics. Either way, the audience was left standing in ovation.

For good reason, this was his second sold-out performance in a row at UNC, and he's already agreed to another visit next April -- expect similar ticket sales.

The Arts & Entertainment Editor can be reached at artsdesk@unc.edu.