Chris Levkulich: Pitt’s own funny man

What do you do with a media and professional communications major and a minor in administration… What do you do with a media and professional communications major and a minor in administration and justice? You become a stand-up comedian. Sounds like a bad joke, right? Quite the contrary, for Pitt fifth-year senior Chris Levkulich has been doing stand-up for two and a half years and doesn’t have plans to stop. ‘It just seemed like a natural thing for me,’ said Levkulich. Levkulich will open for MADtv personality Michael McDonald at the Improv Comedy Theater at the Waterfront from Thursday to Saturday. He even remembers the exact date that he started doing stand-up: Aug. 17, 2006. His parents were away in Alaska, and once the first wave of laughter from the audience hit him, he knew he was hooked. ‘That first wave ‘mdash; it’s like a drug,’ he said. McDonald isn’t the first big name for whom Levkulich has opened. After winning a contest sponsored by the Improv, Levkulich had the chance to open for a national headliner of his choice. He chose John Caparulo from the Blue Collar Comedy Tour. Soon after that, the Improv called him back to open for a headliner again. Levkulich takes heavy influence from comedians like Bill Cosby and Steve Martin, comedians with whom people like his parents grew up . It’s lucky his parents have a good sense of humor, though ‘mdash; not all parents dream to hear that their child is going into the rough world of comedy. ‘I wasn’t nervous telling them at all. It helped that my mom was the funny one and my dad’s humor was just so unfunny and dry.’ If anything, Levkulich’s parents were thrilled with the future of having a son who was going to be a stand-up comedian. They still call every now and then, giving Levkulich ideas and tips for his shows. Family never comes up in his routine, however. ‘I have a big imagination; I do a lot of observational humor and talk about school stuff.’ It’s not that Levkulich has anything against school or anything. ‘I’m a good student,’ said Levkulich, ‘but I just do dumb things. I act stupid.’