By Mary Best
Advisory Editor
The St. Bonaventure Latin American Student Organization (LASO) partnered with the Campus Activities Board (CAB) to bring comedian Sara Contreras to campus last weekend. Her performance kicked off Hispanic Heritage month, which runs through Tuesday, Oct. 15.
Josh Maxey, a senior political science major and president of CAB, said he knew Contreras, star of Showtime’s Original Latin Divas of Comedy, would deliver a hilarious comedy act with a great message.
“We thought bringing in an act that would not only provide comedy, but offer words on what it means to be a Latina in America, would be the best way to help celebrate this important month,” Maxey said.
Nicky Rivera, a senior finance major and vice president of LASO, agreed.
“Since last year, LASO has been wanting to revamp its organization,” Rivera said. “We loved the idea of bringing a comedian to campus that would relate to our student body and Sara Contreras was a perfect fit. Sara is the first Hispanic comedian this campus has had in a long time.”
Contreras performed an engaging routine, interacting with audience members about their names, majors and ethnicities. Rivera said he appreciated her ability to relate to each student in the audience.
“There were jokes in her performance that I thought only Hispanics would understand,” Rivera said. “But as I looked around the auditorium, I saw everyone in the audience laughing. She did a great job of not isolating anyone from her performance.”
Sister Elise Mora, O.S.F., an adjunct faculty member in the department of modern languages, also liked how Contreras poked fun at all races, including her own.
“Whether the humor is Jewish, Catholic, Polish, Italian, black, white, etc., there’s plenty of ‘grist for the mill’ and no one can pull it off better than a person who belongs to the same group he or she is poking fun at,” Sister Elise said.
Sister Elise also enjoyed the performance, even with a few raunchy jokes in the mix.
“There were lots of double entendres and innuendos. But it was nothing that isn’t the daily fare on television,” Sister Elise said. “She certainly managed to get and hold our attention.”
While Contreras referenced certain audience members during her routine, freshman history major Jacob Hazen got a firsthand experience of her enthusiasm when she invited him to dance with her onstage as part of a joke.
“At first I didn’t want to, but the crowd started cheering me on so I decided, ‘no choice here!’” Hazen said. “As I walked up the steps, I felt like I was a member of The Beatles. I hadn’t been on a stage like that in a long time. Her routine with me was a ‘cougar in the club’ joke and after a little while, I was having a blast.”
While Diana Roque, a junior sociology major and president of LASO, loved Hazen’s stage debut, she said Contreras’ story is just as important as her comedy.
“It gave the students awareness of the success there is in Hispanic heritage,” Roque said. “Contreras is a successful Latin comedian and speech therapist, so I believe she set a good example for students.”
Rivera thought Contreras’ comedy stylings offered an insight into Hispanic culture and acted as a perfect way to kick off Hispanic Heritage Month.
“Usually, when learning about a different culture, one cannot fully grasp the culture’s excitement and energy through books or lecture,” Rivera said. “But by bringing a comedian to our campus and having her kick off Hispanic Heritage Month, people were able to learn while laughing and having fun. I think that’s one of the best ways to learn.”
