Breuer Will Bring Act To Sanders

The munchies won’t be very far away when “Half Baked” co-star Jim Breuer brings his act to Sanders Theatre later this month.

The “Saturday Night Live” veteran and his band, Willy’s Basement, will perform on Oct. 21 thanks to a $15,000 grant from the Undergraduate Council and the planning work of the Harvard Concert Commission (HCC).

“We’re excited about bringing a big-name comedian to campus, aimed directly at undergrads,” said HCC Chair Justin H. Haan ’05, who is also a Crimson editor.

Tickets to the performance, which cost $14 for undergraduates and $19 for the public, go on sale at noon Tuesday, Oct. 12 at the Harvard Box Office.

The current push for a comedy act was the brain child of HCC member Kimberly M. Cheng ’05.

“It was something people talked about [before] on the commission, but nothing ever happened,” said Cheng, who was the chair of promotions for the HCC-sponsored Busta Rhymes concert last year.

Haan said that though there have been attempts to lure prominent comedians to Harvard in the past, the last big-name comedy performance actually to take place at Harvard was David Spade, another SNL alum, in 1994.

Haan said that informal polling by the commission showed students “know [Breuer] really well as Goatboy,” the character he portrayed on SNL.

In addition to his role in “Half Baked” (1998), Breuer graced the silverscreen in “American Dummy” (2002).

But Cheng said the choice of Breuer represented more of “a combination of availability, price range and general consensus.”

“[Students] might not recognize his name, but they know his face,” she added.

Trey L. Kollmer ’07, a member of the On Thin Ice improv comedy group, said that Breuer had performed before at his high school in New Jersey.

“My friends who’ve seen him live say he’s definitely good. Not incredible, though,” said Kollmer, who hasn’t seen Breuer live, but has seen his act on SNL.

Haan said finding an affordable comedy act was difficult. While musicians typically command large venues—the Busta Rhymes concert filled the Lavietes Pavilion with nearly 3,000 attendees—comedians are better suited for smaller stages like the 1,166-seat Sanders Theatre. This means comedians cost more per ticket.

Haan said comedians like Dave Chappelle, who has a popular show on Comedy Central and was also in “Half Baked,” charge as much as $100,000 per performance, and were a financial impossibility to bring to Harvard.

Breuer’s performance cost the HCC $25,000, although production expenses will bring the total closer to $30,000, estimated Undergraduate Council President Matthew W. Mahan ’05.

The cost not covered by the $15,000 grant—approved by the council in a 24-0 vote—will be made up in ticket sales.

Mahan said that some members had concerns about the performance’s price tag, but said that these types of events are important for the Harvard community.

“[T]he UC has a larger budget this year....I really think it’s important that we provide for large-scale social events,” he said.