Audiences first knew him as Ryan, the temp employee at Dunder Mifflin’s Scranton branch. Then we saw him become his boss’ boss. On March 29, B.J. Novak, a writer, producer and star of “The Office” became acquainted with an audience as a stand-up comic.

Novak performed his comedy routine at Cornell University’s Bailey Hall in front of a sold-out crowd of 1,327. Testing about 30 jokes on the crowd, he saved those with a response in his briefcase. The rest he definitively threw in the trash, joining the audience in laughing at his bad jokes. No stranger to stand-up, Novak has been doing it for the last four years, mostly in the Los Angeles area. His routine kept the same smart subtleties found in an episode of “The Office.”

“My jaw hurts from laughing so much,” said Cornell senior Michele Annibal.

However, thoughts on the opener were a little more varied. Dan Mintz, best known for writing for Demetri Martin, opened for Novak with extreme dryness, normally reserved for wines and raisins. With jokes about living with his parents and women thinking he was going to rape them, some students were a little thrown off.

“I really liked B.J. Novak’s performance. It was a much needed relief from the opening performer,” said Sara Hauck, a senior nutritional sciences major at Cornell.

Justine Fields, promotions chair of the Cornell University Program Board, was very happy with how the show went and very impressed when the tickets sold out before they went on sale to the public.