On Wednesday night, humorist Demetri Martin will premiere his television show, Important Things with Demetri Martin. But on Feb. 26, students will get the real thing when the multi-talented comedian performs live at Pick-Staiger Concert Hall.
A&O Productions announced “An Evening with Demetri Martin” as its Winter Quarter speaker event on Tuesday, and unveiled a new, online system for selling tickets.
“This is the best time to possibly get him here, because he is new enough that it’s a fresh face, and it’s a hip act to go watch, but he’s also not some unheard of guy in a podunk town,” said Weinberg junior Katie Halpern, A&O promotions and public relations co-chair.
Martin was a staff writer for Late Night with Conan O’Brien, and has featured on shows such as The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.
He is known for his offbeat humor and use of a drawing pad up on stage as a “material enhancer” for his jokes.
“He’ll also be playing the piano, I think,” Promotions and Public Relations Co-Chair Barry McCardel said. “Basically what you would see in the normal [show].”
Martin studied at Yale and dropped out of New York University’s School of Law to pursue a career in comedy, said McCardel, a Communication sophomore.
“He said ‘I found what I want to do and I’m going to do it,’” McCardel said. “He is obviously very bright and very talented.”
Long lines for tickets to recent acts inspired A&O to sell tickets online for this event.
“We’re really hoping that this system will not only make it more convenient for students, but hopefully level the playing field a bit,” McCardel said. “Even if you have class you can get on your laptop, get on the Norris Box Office site and get your tickets.”
Tickets will go on sale on Feb. 16 at 10:30 a.m. on the Norris Box Office Web site, and there will be a limit of three tickets per NetID. Students need to register on the Web site in order to buy tickets. The tickets cost $10 for undergraduates and $15 for graduate students.
Halpern said the actual box office in Norris might sell tickets after the first day of online sales, but that it wasn’t certain.
“We may open it up later in the game,” she said. “But if online ticketing is going really well, and we end up selling out, then there’s no need to open up the physical box [office].”
A&O anticipates that the show will sell out rapidly, McCardel and Halpern said.
“What we hope for is that we have the perfect amount of tickets on sale for the perfect amount of students who want to go. Obviously, that’s never the case,” McCardel said. “We’ll definitely have a high demand for these tickets, because he’s so popular.”
The show starts at 7:30 p.m., and doors will open at 7 p.m., said Syd Cohen, A&O chairwoman.
To Speakers and Special Events Director Adam Pumm, who secured the act, Martin seemed like a logical choice.
“I feel that his style of humor is a good fit at Northwestern,” Pumm said.