How to get Started as a Stand up Comedian
If you were the class clown in high school and think you are funny, you might want to try doing stand-up comedy. Although this is a career you may never have consider, and that your family may frown upon, for those that are successful it can be an enjoyable way to earn a living.Comedians usually start out at local clubs where there is an open microphone (open mic). In most major cities you'll find dozens of them. In smaller towns there may be only one or two. Or you may have to talk your favorite bar owner into starting an open microphone on a night when business is slow.Next, you'll need material. If you are a good writer you can make up your own jokes and present them. But you can find jokes anywhere, in the news, on TV, and in your local bar. Look for funny situations and embellish them. Never let the truth stand in the way of a good joke.Watch a lot of comics in movies, on TV, and on the internet. There are a tremendous number of resources available. Watch how the comics move from one joke to the next. Learn how to make a seamless transition from one subject to the next so that you're not standing there stammering and wondering how to get to the next joke. Make it smooth. You must learn to exude confidence.Audiences at comedy clubs can be brutal. Get the audience's confidence early on by letting them know that you are a pro who has done this before, even if you haven't. This is theater. Pretend! Talk to a few audience members directly and make jokes without attacking them.If you are heckled, be ready to give a snappy comeback that gets the other patrons on your side. This requires you to have some jokes in your back pocket to use for such occasions. One that works most of the time is. You're not funny, buster. If you were you'd be up here and I'd be sitting where you are making those stupid cracks.If you become good at this, you may graduate to taking on the emcee task. Ask club owners if they think you are good enough. Sooner or later one of them will give you the job. This is a step up from simply being one of the comics on the bill. Next you become the middle act. Just below the headliner, the guy who gets the most love and dough.It's not an easy road to becoming a professional comedian, unless you're a natural, but it can lead to a very lucrative career. If you are interested in pursuing this line of work, get to work on your act now, and before you know it you could be standing in front of your first audience.
If you were the class clown in high school and think you are funny, you might want to try doing stand-up comedy. Although this is a career you may never have consider, and that your family may frown upon, for those that are successful it can be an enjoyable way to earn a living.
Comedians usually start out at local clubs where there is an open microphone (open mic). In most major cities you'll find dozens of them. In smaller towns there may be only one or two. Or you may have to talk your favorite bar owner into starting an open microphone on a night when business is slow.
Next, you'll need material. If you are a good writer you can make up your own jokes and present them. But you can find jokes anywhere, in the news, on TV, and in your local bar. Look for funny situations and embellish them. Never let the truth stand in the way of a good joke.
Watch a lot of comics in movies, on TV, and on the internet. There are a tremendous number of resources available. Watch how the comics move from one joke to the next. Learn how to make a seamless transition from one subject to the next so that you're not standing there stammering and wondering how to get to the next joke. Make it smooth. You must learn to exude confidence.
Audiences at comedy clubs can be brutal. Get the audience's confidence early on by letting them know that you are a pro who has done this before, even if you haven't. This is theater. Pretend! Talk to a few audience members directly and make jokes without attacking them.
If you are heckled, be ready to give a snappy comeback that gets the other patrons on your side. This requires you to have some jokes in your back pocket to use for such occasions. One that works most of the time is. You're not funny, buster. If you were you'd be up here and I'd be sitting where you are making those stupid cracks.
If you become good at this, you may graduate to taking on the emcee task. Ask club owners if they think you are good enough. Sooner or later one of them will give you the job. This is a step up from simply being one of the comics on the bill. Next you become the middle act. Just below the headliner, the guy who gets the most love and dough.
It's not an easy road to becoming a professional comedian, unless you're a natural, but it can lead to a very lucrative career. If you are interested in pursuing this line of work, get to work on your act now, and before you know it you could be standing in front of your first audience.
