There was a small crowd on the bitter cold night of Feb. 18, but if there was anybody who warmed up the night in the Building 6 auditorium on the DMACC Ankeny campus, it was comedian Eric Schwartz, aka Smooth-E.
Schwartz started off by making a few funny comments about the noticeably small crowd. It was quite the “ice breaker” (gotta love puns). However, if there was one thing colder than the weather outside, it was the set up crew. No sound crew, delayed lighting, missed music cues, and a podium in the middle of the stage. Come on DMACC.
I will say that Schwartz did a fantastic job of improvising and making fun of the set up crew’s faults in his show.
Not only is Schwartz a comedian, he is also a rapper by the name of Smooth-E. I can honestly say that if Weird Al Yankovich had a long lost relative, it would certainly be Eric Schwartz (Smooth-E). The comical parodies of songs by LMFAO, Shaggy, T-Pain, Justin Timberlake, and other artists were some of the most memorable parts of Schwartz’s performance.
What separates Schwartz from other comedians is his ability to go unscripted and completely improvise parts of the show. Most comedians are by-the-book and have a set of jokes lined up and ready to go, whereas Schwartz is naturally hilarious and can go off-the-cuff.
Another thing that was intriguing with Schwartz’s performance was his interactions with the crowd. Schwartz would randomly observe people in the audience and make them a part of his jokes. The interaction with the crowd kept me tuned in and aware of my surroundings, with a little hint of a desire to be noticed as a part of his routine.
Despite the technical and sound issues, Schwartz’s show was very smooth and confident. For those who did not attend, you certainly missed a great laugh. For those who did attend, I feel like we are all now a part of a secret club that truly knows what an upside down heart symbol means and what a voice combination of Darth Vader and Napoleon Dynamite sounds like. If you did miss the show, you can go to ericschwartzlive.com to see one of Eric Schwartz’s performances for free and SURRENDER TO THE BLENDER!
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