Questions

[CodyK]

I did my second open mic last night. It went well like my first one. I use new material each time (I have a lot to go through, because I keep writing all the time), and make plenty of mistakes (particularly in body language), and about 2/3 of my stuff hits.

Tell me if I'm wrong, but - there seems to be two schools of thought out there from the books I've read. One is to be authentic, write down whatever you want to communicate, and possibly tweak it a little to be funny. The other is to sit down with a list of topics and scientifically deconstruct them into funny pieces. Is that right or am I imagining it?

I seem to be doing the first. I have fairly long setups (30-60 seconds), and then the punches.

Which is very different to the other open mic'ers who are pretty much constant laughter generators. Their setups are much shorter, and they incorporate a lot more energy into their movements, etc, and seem more confident, not just on stage but backstage.

My personality and also character (as an exaggeration of myself) is pretty introvert. I don't really want to become like them, although of course I expect to become more confident over time. The most common comment I've gotten is that I'm professional and intellectual about my stand up.

I guess I'm just thinking out loud, but on the other hand I'm wondering if I am blinded and actually need to break out and start acting more like those other open mic'ers and grab hold of the audience in my next show. Or if I should just focus on fixing whatever body language I think is wrong in my last act and continue on my own path.

The other question I had is about picking a name. My first name is quite common in comedy it seems. My full name is hard to pronounce for MCs or spell for anyone who would want to look it up. Are there any suggestions on picking stage names?

[drieux]

Hey everybody, I've got questions too!

First up, I'm three weeks into doing comedy and have done four shows. So, for my first comedy album, should the cover be a picture of me or something that I find funny? Or should I go another route entirely, and put up something vague and weird, just to amuse myself? And also, should the Thank-You's part of the cover be right on the inside flap, or under the fold and instead have another picture on the inside when you open it up? And for titles, is it best to use a phrase from a joke, or does that kill the surprise of the joke, i.e. I was thinking of the title "Poop Party," which is the closing line of my best joke, and I'm confident I will never top the heights of Poop Party. Well, maybe this new joke I started today, titled "My dog is gay," but when you're an old pro like me you know to take your time and let the bit breathe for a while, right?

I'm also wondering about writing. Clearly, after four shows I must have 19 notebooks filled with gold. I think of myself as a Proustian existentialist, and it is important to me that each setup consists of precisely 33.4 seconds of setup, and then a punchline that MUST contain either the words "boner," "Vajayjay" or "Sisyphean." Combined with my Dandy Fop character - powdered wig, silk jacket and pants - this combination has garnered reactions that I deem to be worthy of the phrase "killed," and clearly I must be right because I've been onstage not once, not twice, but FOUR times. Also, I look forward to a long career as this Dandy Fop, because after spending nearly 20 minutes onstage in this garb I can see no way in which I would become tired of adhering to this or restricting myself to it in anyway whatsoever. My question: shoulld I incorporate simply as an entertainer, or should I plan to do so as a production company, being that I write AND perform? I don't want to find myself 20 years down the line as a happy, content and famous (of course) dandy fop who didn't properly plan ahead for his tax shelters, am I right?

See you all at our Comedy Central tapings!

[CodyK]

I see that you're making fun of me, I don't get why I deserve it though. I wanted to talk shop with like minded people because I'm excited about this stuff.

[drieux]

I'm not making fun of you specifically. However, again and again there are threads created from people who are shiny and new and OMG ReallyReallyExcited!!! and you're asking questions that, honestly, are MILES down the road from where you're at. After getting onstage twice you're already trying to define what kind of comic you are and what type of material you're writing. You're setting up a set of rules and framework for your stage persona that aren't even necessary. Hell, I'm only three years in and I don't even think I have the right to be the one telling you this.

You'll benefit from reading chunks of the Open Mic Experience thread, and the Q&A threads as well. Other than that, keep writing and going onstage. All this other stuff is meaningless, so relax and have fun, okay? You seem like an intelligent, thoughtful person. You'll be fine; chill out and take it easy. You've got a long road ahead of you, but it can all be a great experience and rewarding.

And the same goes for everybody else whose been onstage three times and is already thinking about what the stage should look like for their first HBO hourlong.

[CaptainBreakfast]

Turn that second response into a form response for all beginner questions thread, and you'll never have to put effort into writing another one.

[ASR]

And the same goes for everybody else whose been onstage three times and is already thinking about what the stage should look like for their first HBO hourlong.

My stage is going to be a replica of my childhood living room, except it's on fire and there are naked girls playing volleyball behind me!

[scamboogah]

My stage is going to be two gigantic fingers holiding a smoking joint that says 'Cypress Hill' on it.

(I'm going to buy it at their garage sale to save Comedy Central some money)

[thegreg]

My stage will look the the top of a stool, and there will be a gigantic water bottle.

[CodyK]

Ok. I'll take that as a "keep doing what you're doing", and do it.

[drieux]

Exactly. What you're doing will change as you learn and grow, and you'll answer your own questions.

And Scamboogah is lying; his set will be all the giant inflatable cocks from the Rolling Stones and Beastie Boys tours. But somehow he will still be purchasing them at the Cypress Hill garage sale.

[PaulC]

Exactly. What you're doing will change as you learn and grow, and you'll answer your own questions.

I agree. Just keep doing it and you'll figure out what works for you. The learning curve is a little bit different for everybody and everyone has a slightly different way of working. Don't worry about how anyone else is doing it and concentrate on finding a way that makes sense, and feels natural, to you. And, of course, the only way to do that is to keep going up over and over and over again as much as you possibly can.