Matthew Duckett: A Stand Up Guy

Major: History

How did you get involved in stand up comedy?

I was always interested in doing stand up, since before middle school, and just by chance I came across the Laughology comedy show. The moment I saw it was a stand up show I knew it was something I was going to do for the next couple of years of my life at least. Three days later I was doing open mics. I was just waiting for the opportunity to do it and I found it here.

Who are some of your favorite stand up comics and why?

My all time favorite is Dave Chappelle. Just his ability to reveal truths about society that we sometimes don’t realize is really impressive and something that I aspire to do. And one of the great things about Laughology is that I see comedians that are not well known and they are the funniest people I have ever seen in my life. Another person I would say is Eric Meyers who is just this crazy high energy character. He has people on the verge of peeing themselves. It was easily one of our best shows last year.

If you had to describes your style of comedy in three words what would they be?

Honest, individual, multicultural. I try to be myself and show people that its okay to be themselves. That everyone gets insecure and has shortcomings and that’s okay.

Some comics say that the person they are on stage is a character and they are actually very different off stage. Can you relate to this?

A lot of people in comedy do this, but I am not one of them. It’s not something that I want to do or could do. Part of why I go onstage is to open up my soul and let people know about myself and see if they can relate to that in any sort of way. It’s an effective strategy but something I prefer not to do.

What is your involvement with Laughology?

President/Show runner.

What is your most memorable moment at UCSB?

Being a part of Laughology at UCSB has provided opportunities in comedy that I wouldn’t have had otherwise, especially in the short amount of time that I have been doing it. I was able to do a television taping for FOX as a result of Laughology and knowing people involved with the show.

How can people see you in action?

Come to Laughology! Every Saturday at 8pm in Embarcadero hall. It’s a totally free show and I perform every other week. Or they can catch me in any open mic in Isla Vista. I’ll be there trying to be funny.

What advice would you give to students who want to get into stand up?

It’s really simple, just start writing jokes. People think that they have to be funny right off the bat and that’s certainly not true.  I was a terrible comedian when I started. It takes a long time to get good at it but once you get that first laugh you get addicted to it and want to make it happen again and again.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

I can’t see what I’m having for breakfast tomorrow morning let alone 10 years from now. I know that I’ll be happy and that is as far as I will go. Maybe doing comedy, maybe doing something else, but I’ll be happy.

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