Comedian entertains, eases students into a new semester
Stand-up comedy enjoyed a successful return to Midwestern State on Jan. 17 when the University Programming Board hosted comedian Collin Moulton at the Comanche Suites to help ease students into the new semester.
Not surprisingly, there seemed to be constant laughter echoing from the Comanche Suites as soon as Moulton took the stage.
“Boy, even the procrastination is big in Texas,” Moulton said, as late-comers filled the room, no doubt drawn in by the raucous laughter.
From the get-go, it’s easy to see that Moulton is a seasoned entertainer, as he fed off of the crowd’s energy and then fueled it right back with his own jokes and observations, making for a very interactive show.
Moulton said that when a comedian tries to fight the crowd, they fail, but that wasn’t a problem at all for Moulton as he understood exactly how to entertain a college audience.
“There’s an energy to a college crowd that’s different from any other crowd,” Moulton said.
He especially enjoys performing for younger audiences because for Moulton, performing is all about the sharing of ideas.
“It goes all the way back to Greek times,” Moulton said, “Socrates always talked to and taught the youth of the city.”
Besides that, the students in attendance didn’t seem to mind when Moulton poked fun at the Caribbean accent commonly heard around MSU, and they roared with laughter as he marveled at the hairdo on one student that he fondly dubbed, “Moptop.”
“Everyone in a comedy club is just kind of dull,” Moulton said, explaining why it seemed like he was enjoying himself so greatly.
Sophomore Sabine Marroquin enjoyed Moulton’s ability to be very open with the audience about the awkward antics of his youth or the mistakes he made while learning how to be a parent, but she also liked his ability to improvise.
“Collin did a great job of incorporating things happening at the show,” Marroquin said.
It wouldn’t have been a comedy show if the performer didn’t push the envelope a little bit.
Some students reacted with disapproving gasps after some jokes, namely at the fate of an imaginary midget (not little people), and his hippie mother’s questionable parenting, but Moulton noticed the discomfort.
“That misplaced empathy is going to ruin your life,” Moulton said.
He explained that jokes are hypothetical, that they’re meant to be laughed at. In this way, his performance served as a learning experience as well as an entertaining one.
Marroquin found that Moulton’s raunchy routine worked well with an audience of college students, saying that he reminded her of that one family member who drinks a little too much every family gathering.
“You anticipate that they are going to say some uncomfortable things, but you can’t help but laugh anyway and you end up liking them a little bit more than before.” Marroquin said.
Characterized by his website as a “comedian, writer, actor and human,” Moulton has kept himself busy ever since he first took the stage in 1999. Since then he has recorded two comedy albums, taped a 30-minute special for Showtime called “That’s Just Chicken Stupid,” and won numerous awards for his innate ability to keep an audience laughing.
As someone who’s been managing a busy career in the highly desired field of entertainment, Moulton offered some wisdom to all the students at MSU striving to kick off their career, regardless of what it may be.
“Don’t fear failure,” Moulton said, “just commit to what you want to do and do it. Do what you like until you don’t like it anymore,” Moulton said, “then do something else.”