It’s not too often that volcanoes and stand-up comedy converge, but for comic Ben Miller, that’s exactly the case. 

Miller is a New York City-based comedian whose once-in-a-lifetime visit as an artist in residence at Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park inspired him to utilize his scientific background to craft an hour of humorous material to get audiences not only laughing, but learning. 

“The show is very accessible; you don’t need to be a scientist or have a science background to enjoy the show,” Miller said. “There’s no pop quiz at the end. No one’s getting tested.” 

The stand-up comedian will perform at 6 p.m. Sunday, May 25, at ScienceWorks Hands-On Museum, 1500 E. Main St., Ashland. 

“Opening the show is going to be local Oregon standup Naomi Fitter; she’s hilarious and another funny STEM nerd,” Miller said. 

Tickets are $20 per person and can be purchased at https://bit.ly/3GY8iGP. Please note this show is recommended for ages 18 and older; childcare is available.

Before pursuing comedy, Miller earned a bachelor’s degree in materials science and engineering from Columbia University and spent time researching in various labs. 

“Then one summer I decided to dip my toe in stand-up comedy and never looked back,” he said. “For a while, I did not tell people I was a scientist, so people didn’t think I was a pretentious a**hole, and get booed offstage … but during the pandemic I had a change of heart.” 

For Miller, performing stand-up offers the chance to weave his scientific background into his jokes, but the experience can be a double-edged sword of either getting a room booming with laughter or leading to awkward moments. 

“At its worst, it can be a deeply soul-crushing experience; the New York comedy scene beats you down, but that’s what’s beautiful about it,” he said. “No matter how much experience you have, you can still fail and you get to try and test new things.”

Miller’s unique comedic perspective led him to becoming an artist in residence at Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park in 2023, spending an entire month learning about scientific, cultural and other facets of Hawai’i’s Big Island. 

“It was an immense honor, I did not expect to be selected; normally the people they have are painters and Grammy-nominated musicians,” Miller said. “Day to day was exploring with the park ranger and scientists and seeing what the island’s like and learning from the locals about the history and culture. It was an incredible learning experience.”

Throughout that month, Miller had the opportunity to look upon the fires of the Kilauea Volcano, witness the burning lava lake of the Halema’uma’u Crater and find new jokes and material while enjoying the grand beauty of Hawai’i.

He will be performing across the globe this year with his volcano material, visiting parts of the Pacific Northwest as well as heading out to Reykjavik, Iceland; Birmingham, U.K.; Carmarthenshire, Wales; and more. 

“Volcanoes inherently have this quality that people are interested and fascinated about. I think it’s a subject that people get excited about,” Miller said. 

On his comedic influences, Miller listed “Maria Bamford, Sean Patton, Roy Wood Jr., Jessica Kirson, Jerrod Carmichael, Laurie Kilmartin and whoever writes those jokes on the back of Laffy Taffys,” he said. 

The upcoming show in Ashland will be Miller’s first time visiting the Rogue Valley. 

“I’ve been to Bend before, and Eugene is as far south as I’ve been in Oregon,” he said. “I’ve never been to Crater Lake before, and I’m excited to hang out.” 

Miller has been a comedian for the past eight years and performed at many of the top clubs in New York City such as the Broadway Comedy Club, Stand Up NY, Dangerfield’s, Carolines on Broadway and The Stand. 

To learn more about Miller, visit benmillercomedy.com. 

Tagline: Reach reporter James Sloan at james.sloan@rv-times.com.