Doc Comedy solves YOUR comedy problems!
If your question isn't answered here by Doc Comedy...send it to him!
(Please note that all of the advice offered by Doc Comedy constitutes personal opinion based on years of professional experience and a strong belief in a developmental approach such as is found in a comedy workshop.)
OK - what's your comedy problem?
I'm not sure I want to be a comedian...but I would like to improve my confidence in speaking to small groups...or even larger ones. Can you suggest any training which draws on all your experience in comedy but is focussed on helping me prepare and confidently deliver a short speech?
ANSWER:
We've got just the thing! Try our associated site for full details: www.improvoice.com
OK - what's your comedy problem?
My problem is I'm so terrific I can't get any better! I have a terrifically funny comedy act which works and I feel great about performing it. I constantly come up with ideas for new material and I find it easy to work these into my act. I have a great on-stage persona which is instantly likeable and audiences warm to me wherever I perform.
ANSWER:
OK - what's your comedy problem?
I’ve never performed comedy or indeed anything else – I could never see myself on stage, yet something draws me to it, like a moth to a flame.
ANSWER:
That special something that draws you to the comedy stage is a deep hunger for appreciation of your fledgling talents, which despite your misgivings nevertheless tugs at you day at night, whispering to you at odd moments, calling you to face up to the fact that you just have to know if you can do it. The fact that you’ve never performed in the past is not a problem, the willingness to try is all you need. Most people who start training in any field of endeavour cannot initially visualise themselves as experienced practitioners. Nevertheless, everyone has to start somewhere. Might a comedy workshop be the ideal environment for you to find out just how funny you could be?
I am terrified of being heckled! How do I handle hecklers?
ANSWER:
This is such a common question that we've devoted more space to answering it - to get free advice on this topic of keen interest to so many people,
I have an acting background and I am considering getting into stand-up comedy. I’m not sure whether my acting experience is a help or a hindrance.
ANSWER:
Every experience of performing, communication in its widest sense or indeed any life experience can be a distinct boon in stand-up. It’s important to understand the differences between acting and comedy to gain the success at stand-up comedy that you deserve. Actors speak about the “fourth wall”, which stands between the stage and the audience. In comedy, there can be no such wall, as the interactive nature of stand-up comedy requires a conversational model, where the audience truly feel involved. Actors work within the context of a provided script, explicit direction, stage management and (usually) other actors. The comedian is a one-man band, which carries with it the double edged sword of freedom and responsibility. Freedom to improvise, to create an individual comedy world entirely of their own devising, answering only to the audience. Responsibility for the success (or otherwise) of the show, with no-one else to take either credit or blame. The would-be comic must balance these two carefully and decide whether the rewards outweigh the risks. Those that persist with comedy have discovered that where stand-up comedy is concerned, they do. Many actors find that comedy workshops provide a hard-to-find opportunity to transform their acting experience into a comedy context. You can also see an actor making the transition to comedy in this video clip.
OK - what's your comedy problem?
When (if ever?) should you ask an audience a question...what kind of
questions? how many? how do you deal with the answers?
ANSWER:
OK - first point - questions are tricky - they allow an audience to respond in unpredictable ways. They should therefore be used with care
and only when you are fully prepared to deal with any possible response.
Let's work our way through the various types of questions, from low risk to high risk (always remembering that even a sober audience can use a
gap to say anything they like, not just answer logically!
(1) En Passant
This type of question allows minimal audience input - it's really a conversational gambit that builds acceptance - e.g. "Big Brother has so
many tossers in it, doesn't it, I mean take Jade". This kind of embedded question needs to represent a majority point of
view, not challenge the status quo. If you get this wrong, or the audience decides to have some sport with you, you won't get a nod,
you'll either get a stare or a verbal challenge. Be sure you are prepared for this, so you can "improvise" an off the cuff rebuttal. The
trick is to make your embedded question so smooth, in the same tone of voice as the rest of your sentence, that you get implicit acceptance,
don't you!
(2) How many people...
Do your own market survey, remembering that you need to cater for ALL possible answers, no matter how irrelevant. It may help to have some
generic come-backs which could be used in many situations and still make sense.
(3) Has anybody ever...
The trick with this question is to give it a light touch so that if no-one admits to, say, harbouring secret fantasies about Margaret
Thatcher (errr...just me then!) then you can move on smoothly to your gag. Feel free to express mock disbelief, wide-eyed incredulity or even
head slapping shock, for extra comic effect. Of course, you cam always pick on the few brave souls to raise their hands, but be aware that
they've probably got a witty riposte up their sleeves so you'll need to match it.
(4) Any students/couples/hobbits in tonght?
This is a very common question, and often works in helping to acknowledge the presence of different types of people in the audience.
Again, be prepared to deal with a complete lack of response to all questions. If you do get say, students identifying themselves to you,
don't take the mickey too much or be too cruel, that way nobody else will dare to stick their hand up. And it's really much better to
spend some time taking stock of the presence of a type of person rather than simply use it as a bald introduction to gags about that kind of person.
(5) Any Questions?
Some comics do this as a pure act of bravado, implying they can be funny about anything, just like
that. More often it's a desperate attempt to get any response at all. Not for the beginner.
In general, asking questions in a 5 minute set is not recommended, since it can easily eat into your available time significantly. By all means
try it, but when doing high profile (e.g. competition entry) spots it's best to stick to lower risk options - after all, it's already risky
enough!!
(Please note this answer is geared towards a 5 minute set, which is the focus of our comedy workshop)
I have loads of material which I am just desperate to perform, but I don’t have the confidence.
You have loads of material – that’s terrific! Did you know that having ready access to copious amounts of original material is one of the single biggest differences between commercially successful comedians and the rest? Believing in your material as much as you do (and you must do if you are desperate for it to be heard by an audience) you’ll find that the chance to air it in a comedy workshop will provide you with all the confidence you need to perform before an appreciative audience who want to hear something genuinely different. Today’s stand-up comedian is half writer, half performer, so you are at least halfway to success. Confidence stems from belief in your creative output, and the willingness to try. A comedy workshop presents a valuable opportunity to test the water before you take the plunge!
I have a fantastic and confident stage presence but I don’t have much original material to perform.
ANSWER:
Some people have exactly the opposite problem to you, and would do almost anything to project the confidence and stage presence you do! You are indeed fortunate to have developed the charisma that you display so early in your career. I really doubt that you’ve not had enough colourful and entertaining life experiences to draw on for your act. The best comedy comes from within, so start looking at your issues, doubts, fears, things that make you angry, sad, happy, proud, frustrated and you’ll soon find that the material comes pouring out on tap. You will have to learn how to structure it for best effect, and test how your stage presence interacts with your material. A comedy workshop is the best and possibly the only place where you can obtain a genuine yet constructive response to your material – and maybe hone your stage presence to improve it still further!
OK - what's your comedy problem?
It seems to me that 2 distinct cultures exist - the dominant style seems to be one where the comedian goes out to the audience looking for something to comment on, and links the answer into an amusing story with a reference to popular culture.
On the other hand, established touring comedians don't encourage interaction. The material used is well constructed with regular punch lines to which the audience instinctively responds. Topics are carefully chosen from everyday events and the whole situation is cleverly controlled.
So do I write material that will appeal to
everyone or are there comedy club audiences around that still expect gags?
ANSWER:
First of all, it's great that you are spotting these patterns so early on in
your career- and like everything in comedy (perhaps in life) there isn't just one answer.
The first style you refer to is what I would call a "compering" one. It relies on audience interaction, and essentially builds rapport - the
essence of the relationship between the comic and audience which will allow a
humourous mood to develop. Typically, comperes use this style to warm up the audience so that the second style - "gagging" can use the
rapport which has been developed to launch their more obviously prepared set. Jack Dee doesn't need to do this because people that come to see
him already feel a high level of rapport with him, so he can launch straight into a more tightly sequenced stream of gags. If he stopped to
do "genuine" interaction, the situation would be less controlled, and might result in altered pacing, the set not having time to finish, and
therefore perhaps the big finale being rushed or even omitted.
Most comedians end up preferring to performing in one or other of these styles - sometimes you see a compere who is not really compering, or a
headline act who doesn't tell many gags (e.g. Billy Connolly). However you probably need to develop both styles to a degree, either because the
audience isn't sufficiently warmed up before you go on stage, so you need to "compere yourself", or because it's a competition which is
majoring on substance over style (another way of expressing these two kinds of pattern).
Write material that pleases *you*, it won't appeal to everyone, which is where a pleasant interactive style will win them over anyway.
An ideal place to try out your material and style is of course a comedy
workshop.
OK - what's your comedy problem?
I am a complete beginner and I don’t know how to even start thinking about where to go to get an idea of whether I am funny enough to even consider performing.
A complete beginner like you is in the fortunate position of being at the steepest part of the learning curve, where over a short time you can multiply what you know about a subject many times over. So where could you go to find out whether you are “funny enough” to consider performing? Friends may be of some help, however unless they are comedians (not just any performer) as well as experienced trainers, they could do more harm than good. Well intentioned but subjective opinions are not really the best way to encourage a complete beginner. A comedy workshop on the other hand is the perfect place to offer you all the help you need with your thinking, and a fun time too!
I have done a few gigs but I don’t know where to go to improve my act – it doesn’t seem to work all that well, very hit and miss.
ANSWER:
OK - what's your comedy problem?
I have been performing for just under a year now, with about 30 gigs under my belt. Although my act works pretty well, I want to change my on-stage persona.
Changing your on-stage persona when you’ve been successful for a while can be quite a daunting prospect – a bit like starting again, but with the added pressure of comparing your new act (which may take a little while to “warm up”) with your old, successful act. Yet, this is something you’ll have to do, probably several times throughout your comedy career, to keep yourself fresh and motivated, and continue to stretch your capabilities and avoid getting stale, or stuck in a rut. Getting into the habit of life-long learning with the help of a comedy workshop for improvers will help you re-focus and gain maximum longevity for your stand-up career.
I have been performing comedy for a while, but recently after a particularly bad gig I don’t know if I want to keep on doing it.
Hey – you DO know that you want to keep on doing it – you’re just hurting right now! We have ALL been there - and those of us still performing have learnt that Rome wasn't built in a day, there is no failure - just feedback, and all the clever sayings in the world don't help with the anguish you feel just after a bad gig! However, feeling like that doesn't have to last - as long as you devote your entire energies to looking at what you can learn from the experience, and how much you can apply those learnings to the next gig, the one after that, and so on. Al Murray reckons 4 out of 5 gigs are good, over the career of a comedian - this means if you have more bad gigs early on, you get them out of the way. I don't know if this is true, but it may well help! Although your attitude before you go on stage should always be that you are 100% responsible for the success of your act, there can sometimes be factors outside of your control - e.g. disinterested audience, poor sound quality, wrong audience for your type of material. While you should never use these other factors as an excuse, neither should you discount their effect. In the end it's about working out what IS under your control, and working on that. The structure of your set/gags, your presence and (apparent) confidence, how well your stage persona fits your material - all of these and many more are the aspects that you should focus on to continually improve your act. People often find our comedy workshop re-invigorates them after a bad experience and allow them to re-enter the frat with renewed self-confidence.
I
have a comedy competition coming up in a few months which I need to practice for
and get some feedback on my act.
ANSWER:
A comedy workshop is the ideal place to come and get feedback on your act. See also our advice on comedy competitions.
My stand-up act is good but highly scripted - I’d like to be able to improvise on stage, and I’m terrified of veering away from my script.
ANSWER:
The improv games we play at our comedy workshop are an ideal way of gently easing out of a script in a safe environment - and often lead to the generation of new material. The ability to improvise stems from confidence and a natural, conversational style. All of these are areas we focus on in our comedy workshop.
I want to get to the top in the world of comedy – what’s the best way to get there quickly?
ANSWER:
Be funny! (and come to a comedy workshop where we discuss career paths in the world of comedy)
I’m a trainer and public speaker – where can I go to integrate aspects of comedy into my trainings and presentations?
ANSWER:
Our Presentation Success workshop is an adaptation of our Comedy Workshop specially designed for anyone giving public presentations. We have had several trainers and public speakers come along to our comedy workshops who have discovered how to tune their messages in a comic context, and have experienced significant improvements in their presentation style. Here are links to sites associated with just three of the trainers and speakers that have experienced, enjoyed and enthused about a Virginmirth Comedy Workshop:
www.business-speakers.co.uk/John_Donnelly.htm
I’d like to write for comedy sketch shows – where do I start?
ANSWER:
A writers workshop. Our comedy workshop is geared towards performance, presentation, confidence rather than writing - but keep coming back as we will be launching a writing workshop in the future!
If your question isn't answered here by Doc Comedy...send it to him!