Eric Buss' Weird World of College Comedy

By Ilysha Adelstein
Campus Activities Magazine

When Eric Buss entered college he didn't encounter any of the usual frustrations college freshmen typically have, deciding what career path to follow. Eric already knew that he wanted to pursue the arts of magic and comedy professionally. He also knew that choosing a Theater major at Northern Arizona University (NAU) would help provide him with invaluable voice, movement and stage skills that would aid him in his future quest for a career in comedy magic. What Eric did not know is that not too long after leaving NAU, his major and education would lead him right back to college campuses. Yet this time around it was not as a student, but as an international award-winning comedy magician and college entertainer.

After leaving college, Eric traveled to five different continents performing his one-man show of comedy, conjuring and characters. He has performed at such high profile venues as the Montreal Comedy Festival, the Queen's Theater in London, and the Princess grace Theater in Monte Carlo where he gave a command performance for Monaco's Royal Family. Despite all of Eric's international success, he realized all of his crazy antics were tailor-made for the college market.

His routines are as outrageous and offbeat as his personality, as illustrated by the props and themes he uses in his show. Suspended mirror balls, animated Barbie dolls caught in a love triangle, a pogo stick, and a carrot seeking revenge over an innocent bunny are among the many original gags he brings to life in his side-splitting acts. Although his humor certainly has appeal and has been a hit with all age groups (Who doesn't love pogo sticks and Barbie dolls?), Eric says that his generation X and Y peers are the ones who understand him best and make for his favorite audiences.

"I like college audiences because they are hip to pop culture. Also, I'm not very far removed from the world the students are in right now and I still can relate to the things that they are going through — friends, parties, all-nighters, the whole gamut. There's no better feeling than knowing that you and the audience are on the same page and that always seems to be the case with college crowds."

It comes as no surprise that Eric has so fondly embraced his college-based career. For it was while he was in college that Eric first truly made a name for himself in the world of magic. Right before his junior year at NAU, Eric was awarded one of magic's most prestigious honors when he won a national competition and was name Stage Magician of the Year by the International Brotherhood of Magicians (IBM).

Eric won the competition performing an original routine entitled, 'After the Gig.' Although everyone knows what a magician produces on stage, Eric realized that no magician had ever given audiences a peek at what the magician does off-stage. During 'After the Gig' Eric strips down to his "I Love Magic" boxer shorts, and in the process doves, handkerchiefs and other magical props mysteriously appear in every article of clothing. He had actually broken in his award winning bird act routine during NAU's annual talent show.

"After getting a good reception to 'After the Gig' and winning the talent show I felt like I was ready to take it to a national competition," said Eric. "When I finally entered the IBM competition, my goal was just to perform a smooth show. But after I finished my set, the audience of critical magicians jumped into a standing ovation. Right at that point I knew I had found a career. Winning was just a bonus that night — a big bonus. But the best part of it all was knowing that people really dug what I was doing, both magically and comically."

Although 'After the Gig' has a universal comedic appeal, the concept is truly unique the world of magic. After the routine received such a tremendous response from his peers, both in college and in the world of magic, Eric realized that he enjoyed performing very non-traditional routines more than anything else. He also knew that he had successfully merged magic and comedy, and decided from that point on he would continue to do so in ways that had never been done before.

"Winning the IBM gave me the confidence I needed in my ability to create original concepts. Watching something that is new or different is always more exciting that watching something you've already seen. Sometimes it's just a matter of putting a new spin on a very traditional trick or idea. But that particular spin can make the whole routing seem brand new. That's what I love most about live performance, watching audiences react to something they've never seen before that I camp up with. And that's why I choose to perform an act that's primarily composed of original and outrageous material, to see the audience members' reaction, and hopefully watch their eyes pop out of their head during uncontrollable fits of laughter."

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