Last week Monday, with some cringe-worthy silences, some roaring laughter and a packed bar, Bankside House kicked off its first “uncensored” student comedy night of the year, featuring five acts by residents.
The ambiance – and to a lesser extent the jokes — made for a fun night for many residents. The crowd was notably anxious in the lead-up to each act, unsure whether the well-known paradox of “LSE student” and “funny” could be overcome. Despite some inexplicably noisy pool-players in the back of the room, the audience was in good spirits and performers were able to present their stand-ups in a relatively unencumbered way.
The audience was generous with its applause and praise to the comedians who tried their luck, with one audience member noting: “it does take a lot of courage to get up there and try your luck. You’ve got to respect that.” The stand-up performances were followed by a vote for the best act.
Saach Sivakumar, who was voted “best comedian” at the end of the night, talked to The Beaver about the dichotomy of loving stand-up and studying accounting and finance.
“It was an amazing experience”, Saach said, “especially when I realized the crowd understood my humour”.
Saach’s stand-up was heavily centered around self-deprecation; his relationship with women, his parents, and his ‘small size’ – though The Beaver news editor refused to verify this claim.
Referring to the fact that the event was uncensored, William Baumgarth, a General Course student who also performed, told The Beaver that “it was a very good event for free speech”. Reflecting on his own experience, William concluded that “it was challenging, yet a good time”.
In addition to the innate reward of making people laugh, Saach also received a £50 Amazon gift-card. Bankside’s next themed night is a Karaoke night, which The Beaver will not be covering for the sake of our journalists’ health and safety.
