[See Edward Dominguez's performance history]

After a short stay in Brooklyn, Edward's mother moved them both to Queens, where Edward fell in love with laughter. The year was 1994 and Edward was only 10 years old, on the big screen played the movie we all know and love "Ace Ventura Pet Detective" with actor/comedian Jim Carey. His eyes widened as he studied Jim's comedic style, his funny faces and awkward stance intrigued the 10 year old boy. He had now been introduced with the concept of making people laugh and he loved it. Edward became more and more comfortable with himself and began to come out of his shell. He became the class clown and took his talents with him to Providence, Rhode Island in the summer of 1996.

Providence introduced Edward to a more laid back setting. No more were people rushing up and down the streets or stressing in their cars while enduring back to back traffic like in the city of New York. "In New York I was just this annoying little boy, here people actually found me funny" (Dominguez '08). He incorporated that into his class performances. "The first stand up comedian I admired was Chris Rock, Bring the Pain in 1996". According to his classmates and friends, this was a possibility for Edward. "Everyone used to encourage me to do it. I was scared, I was nervous."

One Tuesday night at the "Brass Lounge" in Johnston, Rhode Island his fears melted away. He had prepared a set a few days before and came to that opened mic night determined to perform. "For a first timer, I killed" (Dominguez '08), the performance was a success, this encouraged Edward to go forward and continue his stand up career. "After the Brass Lounge I was motivated"; from that moment on Edward spent his days thinking…"what can I make fun of". He had his friends make list for him of things they found funny. According to Edward his comedic style developed into something that came for a raw area, "stuff that I have in the back of my head."

Fourteen performances later he was at the Rhode Island Comedy Festival. It was March of 2005, and with four months of comedy experience he won first place at the statewide competition. The 21 year old competed against veterans with 10 years worth of experience and came out on top.

One year later he prepared for his biggest performance yet. The Tuckerman Hall Music Theatre held over 400 people waiting to be entertained. Edward was asked to open up for a hip hop performance and it was there where he was introduced to his largest audience. "For me at that time 400 people was a lot. I got up and I killed. It was like all of them were on the same page as me. What I thought was funny, they thought was funny" (Dominguez '08).

Today, Edward Dominguez has hundreds of performances under his belt and is one of the up and coming comedians in the New England area. He performs on a weekly base and has his schedule available for everyone on his website www.edwarddominguez.com. As Edward always says "I want to die being known for doing something that everyone enjoys", it's sincere, he lives for his audience.

Written by: Mirelis Betances