Ariel Elias had a beer can thrown at her — however she bought the final snicker and sip

USA Prime Time
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In her 11 years of doing standup, this was by far the worst heckler Ariel Elias had ever encountered.

The comic’s gig on the Uncle Vinnie’s Comedy Club in Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey on Oct. 8 began like every other, so she by no means anticipated changing into the topic of a viral video and the newest instance of the comedy stage changing into the scene of an unsettling incident.

Elias had spent the vast majority of her 20-minute set speaking about feminine physique picture earlier than launching right into a pre-planned question-and-answer portion of her set. A joke she ends on seems on some merchandise she sells after the present.

That’s when a lady within the viewers, seated at a big desk of individuals attending a raucous party, yelled to her on stage: “Did you vote for Trump?”

“I wasn’t speaking about politics,” she tells USA Prime Time. “I believe I used to be truthfully speaking about my interval. It simply felt like she was in search of a battle, and I actually don’t suppose I did something to love elicit that.”

The girl was kicked out. Then the person seated subsequent to her hurled a beer can – quick – at Elias’ head.

In the aforementioned video of the second, many within the viewers react with shock.

Elias says she didn’t see the beer fly by her head, however she heard it loudly thump behind her.

“I identical to heard it in opposition to the wall after which I felt the again of my legs had been moist, and I used to be making an attempt to determine what occurred,” she says. “And then I regarded down and I noticed the beer can and put it collectively and other people had been livid that that had occurred, which was good. So I’m glad a mob mentality didn’t take over in opposition to me.”

In the second, she picked the can up and located it was nonetheless heavy with beer.

“I keep in mind pondering, ‘Don’t let the adrenaline win. Take a sip. Be courageous,’” she says. “When I believed that there was nonetheless beer in there, I believed, you recognize what? I’d by no means wanted a drink extra in my life. And I believe that is type of the one solution to get out of this as a result of I nonetheless have 5 minutes left of my set.”

She is aware of that she had the choice to step away from the stage and that “no person would’ve been mad at me.” But, she thought, what about her stickers?

“I promote merch after the present, and my my best-selling sticker is predicated on my closing joke. I used to be like, ‘Well, I’ve to do the joke if I would like folks to come back and purchase stickers afterwards.’”

So she completed.

Later, Elias says, “it was a lot scarier as soon as I bought residence.” She needed to watch the video to appreciate how arduous and quick the beer had been thrown.

“To be trustworthy, I’m not the most effective at processing my feelings. So I believe in all probability identical to in six days I’ll cry whereas watching ‘Man vs. Food,’” she says, laughing.

Her family and friends have been supportive; her mother and father instructed her they had been proud and her fellow comics hold checking in on her.

“Last night time, I did a few spots within the metropolis and everyone requested like, ‘Are you okay?’ Which I believe could be very a lot the query that I should be requested,” she says. “Because the reply is, I don’t know but.”

While Elias has determined to not press prices, the comedy membership is. And though she doesn’t need to again to the city the place it occurred, Elias says she completely loves doing standup and can proceed on.

“Please don’t throw issues at me,” she says. “I really like arise a lot. It’s my favourite factor on the planet. I really like touring and being in entrance of people who find themselves completely different from me.”