Comedian Eddie Izzard makes history
USC students got a history lesson on Oct. 5 from British comedian Eddie Izzard, who gave a surreal account of civilization ranging from the Big Bang to the moon landing.
“What makes Izzard really fascinating is his sheer intelligence, his sheer knowledge about world history, that he can bring into his comedy,” said Dane Martens, director of USC Spectrum, which hosts the Student Affairs arts and lectures program that brought the comedian to campus.
Izzard, who performed to a packed crowd at Bovard Auditorium, jumped stream-of-consciousness style from the Crusades and British tin mining to Greek mythology and Wikipedia. His jokes often took the form of imaginary dialogues, and his characters ranged from Buzz Aldrin to a diary-keeping giant squid. Izzard scurried around the stage as if he was playing every part in a skit.
According to Izzard’s account, the Stone Age began with a little clumsiness: On his way to kill a mastodon in the tar pits, a young man tripped over a rock.
“If it’s bad for my foot, it could be bad for others’ feet — and their heads,” Izzard said. “This could be the beginning of an age!”
Tina Crnko, a freshman majoring in theater and business administration, appreciated that Izzard “really enjoys what he’s doing: He’s laughing along with the audience.”
Izzard, who has appeared in the films Ocean’s Twelve, Across the Universe and Valkyrie, recently sold out the 18,000-seat Hollywood Bowl as the venue’s first solo comedy act. This fall, he specifically reached out to college campuses for smaller shows.
“I really wanted to give USC the opportunity to see him like this,” Martens said. “Twelve-hundred seats as opposed to 18,000 is pretty intimate.”
The event was also promoted by the USC LGBT Resource Center as part of National Coming Out Month. Izzard, who dresses in women’s clothing for many of his performances and describes himself as an “executive transvestite,” sported brightly painted fingernails during his performance.
“College life is all about balance, so it’s nice having this after going to classes and studying all day,” said Cole Manaster, a freshman majoring in business administration. “I’m looking forward to seeing more of the arts that we have here on campus and in LA.”
USC Spectrum’s fall season continues with a screening of the documentary Decoding Deepak and a Q-and-A session with the film’s director on Oct. 21 and an evening with activist and journalist Nicholas Kristof on Nov. 5. For more information, visit usc.edu/spectrum
Eddie Izzard performs at Bovard Auditorium. (Photo/Nathan Carter)