Pete Davidson
The voice alone was enough. As Pete Davidson took the stage Thursday night as the headliner of Student Entertainment Events’ spring comedy show, his voice -— a distinctive nasal rasp — was all the audience needed to begin laughing. A standard introduction from the young Saturday Night Live star, delivered in his signature, dawdling style, acted as the first joke of the set. It seemed Davidson could read the dictionary on stage and get the kind of response most comedians hope for.
So is the fortune of the 21-year-old New York native these days. He joined SNL in September at 20 years and 10 months old. That made him the fourth-youngest cast member in the show’s 40-year history, beaten only by Anthony Michael Hall, Eddie Murphy and Robert Downey Jr. Those are Hollywood names, guys with hits. To put Davidson in that company speaks to his vast comedic ability and potential but provides a stark contrast. Davidson doesn’t come across as someone all too famous. In fact, his defining quality on SNL, and one of the main reasons that he had such command over Stamp Student Union’s Grand Ballroom on Thursday night, is his relatability.
“That’s my style — I kind of just talk about what I’m going through,” Davidson said in an interview Wednesday night.
Dressed in blue jeans, white Jordans and a dark plaid button-up, Davidson ambled around the stage during his set Thursday with remarkable — almost chemically induced — nonchalance. As he landed one joke after another, his arms were often crossed or his hand was casually rested in his pocket. His long, lanky frame is the poster of adolescence, still looking as though it’s in the aftermath of a growth spurt.
His entire set seemed like a series of brutal truths and vulgar confessions. He talked openly about marijuana, sex and relationships. He covered everything from dorm life in his brief stint at St. Francis College (and his “don’t ask, don’t tell” toilet paper policy) and his awkward high school experiences (“It just wasn’t my time to … have friends”) to using Harry Potter as a measuring stick for sexual accomplishment.
“He didn’t sugarcoat anything,” Endrias Samson, a freshman enrolled in letters and sciences, said after the show. “He was very real with us. Like, very real.”
A set about real life was Davidson’s goal, he said.
“That’s where I get all my material, and it’s relatable because everybody goes through that stuff,” Davidson said in the interview. “I think in that sense it’s pretty much storytelling. OK, no, basically it’s a lot of dick jokes and some storytelling.”
He said the kind of things that many of the 900 people who picked up tickets for the free show had certainly thought at one time or another but would never dare voice.
“I’m kind of a dark humor-type guy, and sometimes things aren’t bad anymore if you can laugh at it,” Davidson said. “I try to make fun of stuff that is not really funny, and then if I get a laugh, it’s OK.”
Some of his jokes were met with a few gasps, but the night was mostly marked by applause from the crowd and a couple of chirps from female admirers in the first few rows. After the show, students milled about outside the Grand Ballroom, buzzing with approval. One group of freshman friends discussed their admiration of Davidson’s honesty.
“He’s very endearing,” said Elise Nichols, an art and marketing major. “He’s a cutie.”
“He’s not trying to sell you anything. Really chill,” said Bryce Peterson, a mechanical engineering major.
“I feel like I could be him,” said Peter Wight, an aerospace engineering major.
The positive reaction was surely a relief for Davidson, who said performances at colleges can be a mixed bag.
“I enjoy doing colleges, but sometimes they’re not the best because it’s somebody your age talking to you, so it’s a ‘Why the f— would you listen to them’ type of thing,” he said.
As it turned out, the audience loved somebody their own age talking to them. The opening act of the night, New York comedian (and Davidson’s early mentor) Craig Loydgren, did not attain nearly as much success as his young friend. Jokes about a stale marriage and the worries of being a father elicited only a few chuckles from the eager crowd.
Running short on material toward the end of his set, Davidson offered to do a small Q&A. This quickly turned into a very casual conversation among friends, as students peppered him with questions about his favorite shoes (between the 4s and the 13s), his favorite rapper (Juicy J forever) and favorite SNL sketch of the year (Japanese Messy Boy with J.K. Simmons). One girl just asked him to say “Hey Laura” and someone else asked him if he wanted to hang out. The night ended with a panoramic photo and a riotous round of applause.
Davidson’s performance in College Park was the second of three college shows he was doing back to back. Once his short stand-up run is over, he will head back to New York to prepare for SNL’s 40th anniversary show on Feb. 15. The special is shaping up to be one of the biggest in the storied program’s run, as it will showcase the well-known history of an icon Davidson is now a part of.
“It’s pretty crazy,” he said. “I’ve been learning a lot. They have the best writers, the best performers, the best improv — everything. I’m the least funny one there.”
Still considered the “resident young person” at 30 Rock, Davidson said stand-up is different. His material has to evolve.
“When you’re 17 and 18 and some joke doesn’t go well, you can just laugh and say, ‘I’m 18,’” he explained. “You’re cute when you’re 18, so now I’m really not cute anymore. Going up there is no longer a cute thing; that doesn’t last very long. You kind of have to have jokes.”
That’s what makes his life experiences the easiest source of material: They’re endless. As he grows older, he will continue to think things are weird and darkly funny. He will always be able to joke about life, and for many students in the crowd Thursday night, they will always be able to understand. They’re on the same track.
In this sense, it’s only fitting that when he’s asked what he does for fun, Davidson’s answer isn’t surprising. It is one that could be given by any student in any dorm across the country. When he’s not being broadcast to the world or selling out shows, Pete Davidson is just like us.
“I basically just watch Friends with my girlfriend and play Xbox. Like, that’s it.”
There’s the voice.
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