Get Up, Stand Up: Harvard Comics Get Competitive

Though many Harvardians get their kicks just from the looks of their peers, there may be a better source of humor on campus.

Members of the Harvard College Stand Up Comics Society have been invited to the stand-up division of the RooftopComedy’s National College Comedy Competition Tournament, exclusively designed to discover the “funniest” students in America.

The bracket-style tournament bases acceptance on the comedic value of clips submitted by college stand-up groups. “There are eight people from each school, and two schools go head-to-head at a local comedy club,” said Charles T. James ’09, a four-year member of HCSUCS. The more hilarious team is voted the winner and proceeds to the next round, attempting to out-funny other college quipsters.

Last year, HCSUCS members representing Harvard went to the competition against a fully-manned Boston College team, but that didn’t put a dent in HCSUCS’s punch lines.

“Only four of us went against all of them, but we went up there and we did one of our best performances,” said James. Indeed, Harrison R. Greenbaum ’08 was declared funniest comedian overall.

Despite their certified status as a humor group, many at Harvard are not aware of HCSUCS’s tournament ventures, let alone their campus performances.

“H what?” said Rachel E. Lee ’10, when asked about the group’s existence. She is certainly not the only one in the dark.

“Our performances haven’t been excellently attended,” said David R. Rhein ’09. “Publicity has never been the group’s strong suit. Our thing is jokes.”

This year, however, students might find an age-old incentive to attend HCSUCS’s first round competition. Their adversary? Yale.

Looks like after a crushing shut out at The Game, the Bulldogs may have a chance to redeem themselves on the stage.