This story was updated to reflect ticket sale status as of Friday morning.
Nick Offerman, actor behind mustachioed macho-man Ron Swanson on the popular sitcom, Parks and Recreation, will move from screen to standup Saturday evening.
Offerman will stop at Templeton-Blackburn Alumni Memorial Auditorium during Dads Weekend as part of his “American Ham” tour.
The show is sold out.
“It should be a fun house to be in — a full house of students, their dads and community members,” said Andrew Holzaepfel, senior associate director of the Campus Involvement Center.
Along with being a staple on Parks and Recreation, Offerman has also starred on the big screen, playing roles in movies such as 21 Jump Street and We’re the Millers.
Rachel Lewis, a junior studying history and video production, heard about the show when it was first announced during the summer.
“I flipped out and got ten of my friends together,” she said. “I was in Athens and went to buy the tickets right away.”
Aziz Ansari, Offerman’s fellow cast member on Parks and Recreation, performed at OU as part of its 2011-12 Performing Arts series. Lewis, who attended the show, said it was excellent.
“Amy Poehler (a producer for Parks and Recreation) makes really good business decisions,” she said. “So, I think (Offerman) is going to be great.”
Allory Auflick, a fifth-year student studying French education, bought tickets right away because of her affinity for Offerman’s character on the show.
“Ron Swanson is easily one of the greatest fictional characters on TV in my opinion,” she said. “His delivery is deadpan most of the time, and I think it could easily fall flat, but he delivers again and again and has developed this great signature style that couldn’t be replaced.”
Offerman won the Television Critic’s Award for his role as Swanson. Along with acting, he also has a love for wood crafting. He runs a collective called Offerman Woodshop. But whether his much-famed delivery of sitcom lines and young celebrity tweet readings from Conan will transfer to the stage is another question.
“Nick Offerman will draw a crowd because of his portrayal of Ron Swanson, but hopefully by the end of the night we will be able to see him in a new role — that of a stand-up comedian,” Auflick said.
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@EmilyMBamforth
