Matt Jackson, a senior from Tustin, Calif., died on stage Friday night, but the audience could hardly stop laughing.

Jackson had just performed a skit about trying to cure all of the world’s diseases on himself.

Jackson was in most of the 16 sketches the two-year old comedy team Space Monkeys performed Friday night at the Mass Media and Technology Hall Auditorium.

An audience of about 100 people watched skits written by Jackson, the team’s creator, and Monkeys member Paul Dube, a junior from Evansville, Ind. Topics included ultimate frisbee, a John Mayer addict’s intervention and homemade reality television.

One skit had Emmalena sophomore Nate Hodson playing a mother who confused Internet search engines such as Google, Yahoo and Excite with pornography.

Hopkinsville junior Amanda Gray said she liked that skit and the rest of the show.

“They put a lot of hard work into it,” she said.

Jackson created Space Monkeys by adapting the formula of another comedy group on campus. The team had their first show in April 2002. Jackson wanted to do another show before last week, but the members had conflicting schedules.

Louisville junior Justin Guest said he had seen some of the skits Friday night at the 2002 show.

“It was better this time,” Guest said.

Jackson said he doesn’t see himself with the group after graduation.

“We all have different goals and different paths,” he said.

Even though he plans on pursuing a career in comedy, Jackson will graduate with a double major in religious studies and communications.

Jackson said his Christian belief often conflicts with the comedy the group performs. He said he believes that many acts resort to “cussing or making gay jokes” to get a laugh. He named the group Space Monkeys to promote a more innocent and youthful type of comedy.

Jackson has an intimate relationship with Happy Gas, another comedy team on campus. He was the roommate of one of the co-founders of Happy Gas.

Jackson said he hopes to have another show before he graduates in December.

Russell Bryan, a freshman from New Albany, Ind. said the skits were good, but the show had its flaws.

“The way some of them ended was strange,” he said.

Reach Bobby Harrell at [email protected].