Written by: Lindsay Sauvé

Fans of The Office and Flight of the Conchords waited patiently outside of Lindsay Hall this past frigid February weekend. Some waited for two hours just to ensure they would have a great seat to watch two renowned comedians perform at Bentley, with the tension in the foyer of the auditorium rowdy and students quoting The Office in anticipation for the two-man act.

Comedians BJ Novak and James Smith performed in CAB’s second comedy event of the year, following Stephen Lynch’s performance in November.  Koumantzelis Auditorium was completely filled to its 480 person capacity last Saturday night, in fact the only logistical problem of the night was that nearly 100 students were turned away due to capacity problems. This series was providing the chance for Bentley students to laugh off the long week of classes and work.

Smith started the show by warming up the crowd with his relevant and hysterical standup. He discussed the financial bailout bills as well as Oprah’s influence in this past election. He also commented on the irony of his name and noted that his mother must have used “the example” on the birth certificate form. He also discussed the financial bailout, including AIG’s exorbitant vacations and his questioning about the losses of funding, asking “who has the money? I know I don’t have it. And looking around I’m pretty sure you don’t have it either.”

BJ Novak’s act started with the recognition of a fan’s “Fire Guy” sign, a reference to an episode he wrote from The Office. Overall, his standup featured dry humor, but lacked the relevancy that was illustrated in Smith’s performance. Novak’s act included a puppet, as well as an interactive act where the audience judged the quality of his one-liners.

At the end of his act, he opened up to the audience through a question and answer forum. During this, Bentley students asked questions about The Office, Novak’s acting career as well as personal relationships with cast members such as Steve Carrell, Rainn Wilson, Mindy Kaling, and Creed Bratton.

Novak also discussed his favorite episodes stating he had been thinking about it, but he was torn between “A Benihana Christmas” and “The Injury,” where Carell, Boss Michael Scott, burns his foot on a George Foreman Grill accidently, in an attempt to wake up to the smell of bacon before work.

When asked about off-set relations, Novak talked about how great it is to work with Carell, and Wilson is just as funny off set as he is when he’s playing Dwight on The Office. He said his favorite person to work with is Bratton, simply because “he is always Creed.” Questions were asked about his on-set relationship with Kaling (Kelly) who he has been in an on and off relationship on the show. He seemed hesitant to answer the personal questions, simply stating she’s a great girl.

Novak also said he has not been in recent episodes of The Office because he was filming Quentin Tarantino’s upcoming film Inglorious Basterds.

Both comedians were kind enough to meet with the CAB e-board as well as members to sign posters and take pictures.

After the show, James Smith discussed his inspirations as well as his advice to Bentley students. A businessman by profession, Smith left the private sector and law school to pursue his passion in comedy, following such inspirations Chris Rock, Eddy Izzard, David Letterman, as well as Jerry Seinfeld.

When asked how business students should go about following in his path if they have a passion for comedy, he joked “don’t” but later went on to say he would tell students to stay involved with campus activities such as debate clubs and open mic nights.

Smith, an Australian native and guest on the HBO series Flight of the Conchords was the opener for Novak. Smith grew up in Sydney, and is a banking and finance lawyer by profession. Smith was the winner of Australia’s Star Quest in 2001. Aside from stand-up comedy, Smith is also a permanent writer and performer on a national radio station in Australia

When asked about the current influx of Australian humor and comedy in America, he said he was “very impressed” with the talent in Flight of the Concords as well as another HBO series Summer Heights High. Smith was extremely humble, stating that he admires writers outside of stand up, and can’t imagine how laborious it is for Christopher Lilley to play three characters in Summer.

Novak, CAB’s main comedy act, is best known from his role on the Emmy nominated television series The Office, as well as a writer and a co-producer of several episodes of the show, including “The Fire,” where his character Ryan Howard starts a fire in the office by overcooking a cheesy pita. Novak grew up in Newton, Massachusetts and also attended Harvard University, majoring in English and Spanish where he started his stand up career. In addition to The Office, Novak has appeared in the films Unaccompanied Minors, Reign Over Me and Knocked Up.

Both Smith and Novak pleased the crowd in their own ways, ending CAB’s weekend of events with a bang.