On Nov. 5 Hannibal Buress took the stage in Cole Fieldhouse for what would be the last performance in Cole as students at the University of Maryland know it.
Buress’ routine covered a fairly wide range of topics. His stage presence was a strong one and the cadence in his voice was perfect for delivering a slew of relatively fast-paced jokes that were always met with laughter by the engaged student audience.
It wasn’t surprising that Buress’ standup performance seemed to go over well with students. Buress is a powerhouse in the comedy scene, with credits ranging from 30 Rock to Broad City and even his own show, Why? with Hannibal Buress.
The comedian wasn’t always alone onstage. Throughout his performance, Buress made use of a DJ who would play clips of rap songs or sound effects that Buress would riff jokes off of. The DJ proved a refreshing twist on the typical standup set.
“I liked that he had his own DJ who could play the songs,” said junior communication and psychology double major Jason Siegel. “[The DJ] could play the songs he was referencing, rather than him having to describe each rap song he had a joke about, I thought it made it go smoother.”
Siegel, who had seen Buress perform once before at an Oddball comedy festival, commented on the progression of Buress’ comedy.
“His style evolved a lot since I saw him last summer at Oddballfest,” said Siegel.
Buress’ set didn’t involve a lot of crude humor; it tended towards being social commentary told in a hilarious way.
“Hannibal is hilarious without being too gross which is sometimes hard to find in comedy,” said freshman letters and sciences major Katherine Hedges. “I really think he gave a performance worthy of being the last in Cole.”
Overall, students seemed to be impressed and happy with Buress’ performance.
Sophomore government and politics major Jack Lewis said the show was “worth the price of admission just to hear [Buress’] iconic laugh.”
As the standup set came to an end and Buress performed his classic “gibberish rap” while backed by a slew of University of Maryland ballerinas, the audience chuckled though the final moments of the grand finale.
A confetti cannon blasted blue confetti all over the crowd. The last show in Cole Fieldhouse had come to a close, but everyone was laughing too hard to be sad about it.