Chewer Comedians

So either this Stand-Up forum is new, or I'm blind.

In any case, I'm curious as to any chewers who do stand-up. 5-6 years ago I was doing it regularly, making a decent enough living off of it and doing a couple of small regional tours. It was a fun and interesting time. I haven't done it since though. Recently I started writing again for stand-up and I'm looking for venues where I can work on my new material and start crafting a new routine.

So any other chewers do stand-up? I'm curious to hear how you write and develop jokes, where/how you find your venues and any good stories or anecdotes. Hey, we can even network from here!

Good for you, Jake. I think a solid 5 minute set can be one of the hardest things to create. I think it's oft-times harder than creating a good longer set. With a longer set the audience can be a bit more forgiving. You can have a better ebb and flow between small jokes and big jokes and the audience doesn't seem to resent any missteps or detours. With 5 minutes it's got to be nothing but gold that builds and builds upon itself. It's a tricky thing to create.

I also carry a notebook with me everywhere to write down any and every idea that may come into my mind. I like creating what I call skeletons of a joke - loosely defined setup and a couple of different punchlines/directions where the joke could go. Then I like getting in front of an audience at an open mic and adding in the meat to the bones of the skeleton. I use a lot of improvisation to feel around for where I can add more punchlines, see what works, see which is the best direction to take any given joke, etc. After a few sessions at an open mic I'll usually have a pretty solid joke crafted from any given "skeleton."

I love the feeling of creating a joke, writing it down and thinking, "This joke is great. It's going to kill." I love just knowing that a joke is golden as I write it. And then getting up onstage and delivering it and having it fall completely flat. Ha! That reversal of fortune is glorious.

It's brutal, it really is. But in an absolutely wonderful way. Bombing is an excellent barometer, and what I hate more than bombing is getting cheap laughs or pity laughs. Bombing hurts, but in a way that compels you to do something more or better. It hurts so good.

If you could control a club/bar setting like you controlled an auditorium (The boll weevil is us!) then I wouldn't worry, Patrick.

See: That is what I find interesting. You do the fleshing out in your head. I find that difficult, and oft-times I completely misread what I think will be funny in my head with what is actually going to be funny. So I tend to do the fleshing out through trial and error in front of an audience.

How do you develop sense to flesh it out in your head and then keep it fresh and have it work in front of your crowd?

Dang. What you just said, Patrick made me realize something. I can't yet really describe it. I've got to think about it. But it's interesting.

Maybe this thread needs to be a support group to get people over their fear of taking that first step. It seems like just as every drawer in every office has half a manuscript for a novel waiting there, most people have a 3-5 minute routine stuck underneath a bit of fear.

Yeah. I have had only 2 family members who have ever seen me do stand-up. They came on a "special" night. We were doing a joint show with the local independent cinema who had just opened The Aristocrats. The film was proving to be immensely popular so we teamed up to do a show where the public could see the film and then come and hear local comedians perform their version of the joke. My family members thought this would be a good night to come see me. I hold the record for the evening: I walked 20 people. My family was . . . surprised.

So what I'm saying is, if my family hasn't disowned me yet, I'm sure your ladyfriend won't abandon you. At least immediately.

Sketch comedy has a whole different feel than stand-up, for both the performers and the audience.