Comedian Bill Santiago made his appearance in Ives 101 on Thursday, Sept. 26. A comedian on networks such as “Comedy Central,” Santiago embraced Sonoma State University. 

The theater was packed. There was not one empty seat; in fact, there were people sitting on the floor. Laughs filled the environment. There were people kicking their feet, rocking back and forth and crying from laughing so hard. The atmosphere was so light, definitely relieving the stress that everyone had built up from their classes so far. 

At the end of the comedy show, Santiago read the crowd some lines from his book “Pardon my Spanglish.” 

Santiago shared some of the best things about being Latino. 

“Meeting siblings, you never knew about,” said Santiago. “No one is ever going to call you white trash.”

The crowd busted up laughing.

Throughout the duration of the show, Santiago based most of his jokes off of the use of Spanglish (which is Spanish and English combined).   

 “Bill Santiago was one of the best comedians I have seen,” said sophomore Nick Tomasello. “He was able to integrate Spanish humor into his act, while still making it funny for those of us who do not speak it.” 

Santiago engaged well with the audience and was very interactive. There wasn’t a dull moment throughout the entire show. 

There were many times that Santiago even began dancing. He danced Salsa, the Merengue and a few others. He talked about the way that different cultures danced, which made the audience crack up. 

 “I’m from a Spanish speaking country and I thought that his humor was not offensive but had some true aspects to it,” said sophomore Nicole Peyko. “It was my first time attending a comedy show and I found that it was very entertaining and Bill Santiago was full of so much life. It was nice to laugh instead of yelling at my text books for once.”

Santiago had a whole segment on grammar. He went back and forth with whether it was proper to say “I could care less” or “I couldn’t care less.” 

“I have always aspired to be a comedian,” said senior Jon Heskes. “After seeing Bill Santiago live, I decided to make it a goal to start performing and work my way towards being a comedian myself. I would really like to perform here on campus.”

Many people couldn’t even contain their laughter throughout the show.

“Bill Santiago was so hysterical that I almost wet my pants,” said junior Steven Sedgwick. “No joke. I can’t even wait to attend more comedy shows. I definitely needed that comedic break from school.”

Bill Santiago kept the show entertaining and was able to distract even those who came into the show upset. He was very consistent and knew how to work the audience. Many felt connected to the comedian even though they had never heard of him in the first place. 

Santiago does have a Facebook page if anyone is interested and would like to pursue their interests in comedy. Santiago also has a book, “Pardon my Spanglish,” where peoplee can find more of his jokes and humor. 

Now, there will be many students checking out his Facebook page and following up on his book with laughs and aching stomachs.

For those who are stressed with school assignments and exams, comedians such as Bill Santiago can strip the stress away. 

The next comedian set to perform on campus will be at 8 p.m. in the Pub on Oct. 17.