As a reporter who is generally on the music beat, I do not make it to comedy shows very often. Though, when I do, I always seem to enjoy them, and the Maintenance Shop is a great setting for live stand-up.

On Wednesday night, a crowd filled up about half the seats in the M-Shop to watch comedian Jordan Carlos. I have to say, for being scheduled in the middle of the week, the comedian had a good-sized and receptive audience.

Immediately, I noticed that Carlos was awesome at interacting with the crowd. He brought up a topic on stage, and most of the time he would talk to a random audience member about it. He did it in a way that was always funny too, and I respect that, as he probably had to improvise his comedy based on what each audience member said.

His topics were pretty random, but that was not a bad thing. He jumped from one idea to another quickly and always kept it entertaining. His transitions were always smooth, and I think that was because he made his  set feel so much like a conversation between himself and the crowd.

Carlos used his home life in New York City as a backdrop for much of his material.

“I’m from Brooklyn and I made it all the way out here, in a day!” Carlos said.

I loved when he compared life in the Big Apple to life here in Ames. He played around with Iowan clichés and poked fun at the audience about the state, but his comedy about our homeland was never hurtful.

Even when Carlos made jokes about New York City, a place I have only been to once, I always laughed along. His perspective of the city was really unique and interesting to hear about. While on this subject, he brought up things such as the subway, egos based on umbrella sizes and rent prices.

“I’m moving here after hearing Iowa rent prices,” Carlos joked.

Carlos also alluded to past life experiences. I really look forward to storytelling in stand-up comedy, and his tales from life did not disappoint. He talked about his childhood, some of his old relationships and his current one.

He liked to pick on couples in the audience when talking about relationships as well. Some of his conversations with couples were awkward, but that added a bigger comedic effect to what he was already saying.

Carlos actually went over his set’s run time; At about an hour and a half, he looked at the time and said he was only supposed to go on for an hour. He ended the night at about the two-hour mark. The night went by fast, but in the best of ways.

I found Carlos’ comedy to be very causal: He was charismatic and laid back at the same time. His set gave me a good laugh for the middle of the week. I really appreciate that he went over his scheduled time with no problem at all and that he showed a ton of love for the crowd.