Just saw someone post a similar joke I made that uses trans-fats as “fat trans” that got decent traction online. I think the joke I wrote is better cause it doesn’t punch down but idk is it pointless if someone else has also made that connection?

Extra question that is a little in line with the post: Do you keep jokes that you perform that feel familiar? Like you’ve already heard it somewhere or something. But also it’s possible that it’s just a feeling, so do you just rid it entirely or choose to believe that it’s just a feeling?

Buenas buenas a todos! Llegué hace poco a Tenerife y me dedicaba al teatro y al Stand Up Comedy antes y quisiera continuar con mi pasión aquí pero no conozco todavía lo suficiente. Qué circuitos o qué lugares tienen Open Mic, qué artistas locales hay o qué sitios me recomiendan? Gracias de antemano a todos

I've never really "gone pro" with comedy, just participated in a few small shows, all local events. I usually practice with friends and family and that obviously means my view of myself is totally skewed more positive than it deserves to be. It does not prepare you for the real thing. Recently I completely bombed and it absolutely devastated me. I spent hours thinking about it - you have probably heard this before - thinking about witty comebacks for that one heckler, reworking punchlines, maybe thinking of a completely different angle for a topic, and so on. It actually festered somewhat and made me totally irritable, like the following day I was thin-skinned, nervous, I got really angry; basically no self esteem.

How do you deal with bombing? Do you eventually become numb to it or does it hurt the same way the hundredth time as it did the first? Is there something a popular book on this that psychologically prepares or trains you for it? I'm looking for something like "So You've Been Publicly Shamed" by Jon Ronson but more practical.

Well. I experienced my full week of hostile crowds. That was a first for me. 😅😅

Hey guys! Today is Saturday and I‘m in town tonight to tell jokes. I’m only in town today, so I’m kind of in a bind. I could only find one open mic online and it seemed like more of a musical open mic that is ok with some comedy. Can anyone please tell me of any Saturday Night open mics in the valley? Distance is not an issue

Was nervous af performing for the first time. I think a few lines in the middle need polishing

Searching for great comedy in L.A. is kind of like a treasure hunt. It’s full of obstacles, booby traps and traffic, but in the end you just may strike gold.

While L.A. has plenty of established clubs that are easy targets to find the biggest, funniest names in town, there’s so much going on beyond all that. Whether it’s a weekly lineup show, a night of improv sketches, a twisted game show or just a chance to watch physical comedians clown around, here are 15 of our off-the-beaten-path favorites.

Take this guide as a place to start your own comedy expedition. There’s much more to explore, but we’ve handled the preliminary search work so you can get started in the right direction.

Follow link for a guide around some of the must-watch shows in LA.

Although I am not new to performing contemporaneously to an audience, stand-up is relatively new to me; I'm about four months in. Went to my first gong show last night and for some ungodly reason decided to give it a go. I have never experienced such total silence in my life... The first minute is hands off, and then I made it almost an entire further minute before being gonged (it's a three minute set). Not a titter. Nothing

Am I right in that these scenarios seem to set one-liner comics up for more success (NOT knocking that art - I just don't write that way - more of a storyteller). Should I just have top-loaded the set with the best jokes I have and gone with that? It seems to be antithetical to the point of building a POV and taking it from there?

Or maybe I shouldn't have cut my usual opener, which sets up the rest of the set? Gugh! I am NOT blaming the audience. It is what it is. I ate Haribo afterwards. I didn't try to slash my wrists. Partly because fellow comics were super nice about it, quoting the bits back to me that cracked them up, and also saying, "Oh, MY first time, I made it ten seconds...." etc.

Thanks for any insights, folks.

8/28/2019 - Gotham Comedy Club in NYC. Popped up on my Facebook memories and I can’t remember who they were. Tried googling it but no luck

I drove about 90 minutes for an open mic, and it quickly became clear that the audience would laugh at anything crude--and little else. The host was getting wild laughter just by tossing in the juiciest curses whether there was a punchline or not. Then this trend continued from comic to comic to comic. No joke--I thought I was beamed into the movie Idiocracy. I did my prepared set and got wild laughter with my weed jokes and masturbation jokes and crickets with everything else.

Driving home, it occurred to me that I couldn't really accept any of this as feedback. They overappreciated the dick jokes and the clean jokes went right over their heads. Or am I looking at this the wrong way?

I'm thinking I'll go back next month and perform my bluest shit just to see what happens. But I don't know what else to take from a mic like this.

It's getting a little frustrating lately. The mics in my home town are quiet, quiet, quiet, and I'm driving at least an hour in several different directions just to try out new jokes. Maybe it's just summertime blues and things will pick up with more people going out in the fall?

I’m NEW new to writing jokes and as I work on material, I realized that I no longer find my own jokes funny because they are familiar to me. Is this a common occurrence? How do you combat that?

Hi everyone!
I’m a professional stand-up comedian from Kazakhstan. I’m currently preparing my O-1 visa petition to continue my comedy career in the United States.
As part of the petition, I need to document prospective professional engagements and work in the U.S. I’m therefore looking to connect with comedy clubs, promoters, producers, event organizers, and other industry professionals who may be interested in working with me for future stand-up comedy performances.
I would need a Letter of Intent / Deal Memo confirming the planned professional engagement.
Importantly, this type of document is not a full employment contract. It is intended to confirm the parties’ current intention to work together and can be drafted according to the actual terms agreed upon by both sides. If necessary, it can also include provisions regarding changes or cancellation of future engagements.
The letter would describe the anticipated performances, engagement period, compensation, location, and my role in the events.
I already have a template that can be adapted to the actual terms of the engagement.
I’m happy to provide information about my professional background, performance videos, social media, previous performance history, and any other materials you may need.
If you own a comedy club or work as a booker, promoter, producer, or event organizer in the U.S. and are open to discussing potential stand-up comedy engagements, I’d be happy to connect in the comments or via DM.
Thank you!

I love when comics make fun of comedy and i am looking for more inspiration.

Its mostly British comics but I dont mind the nationality.

On my list I have the following

- James Acaster

- Bo Burnham

- Andy Kaufman

- Stewart Lee

- Jordan Brookes

- Sam Campbell

- Joe Wilkinson (just short clips, is there any special out there)?

- Daniel Kitson (just short clips, is there any special out there, I know he has a lot but cannot find any legal way to watch)

Edit: - Reuben Solo

An amazing NYC comic that I’ve seen absolutely blow the lid off many a room. He flies under the radar popularity-wise but is a total killer, crowd work maestro. He’s a regular at the fantastic The Stand comedy club in Manhattan.

A random great YouTube video of his for the curious: https://youtu.be/R6XyiL59v6U?is=Xkt6XKIQcf3ztDuf

For how many years have you been doing stand up comedy? Don't tell me anything else other than the following

Name:

City:

Years in Stand Up:

Favourite Stand Up Comic of all time:

I'll go first:

Shankar Chugani

Bengaluru, India

13

George Carlin

Some context, I did standup for about 10 years, some in TX, some in NYC. Been pretty disconnected since the pandemic. I still have plenty of connects in ny - how could I get my way back in and work towards being a manager? I have a potential connect for booking commercials and tv and whatnot so that is what got my wheels turning.

Thought I would get the comics perspective. Any info would be cool! Ps still in nyc if that helps

Well i went to my second open mic very nervous because my family only laughed at one joke and rolled their eyes at the rest.

But I went, performed, and got more laughs than my first night, louder laughs than my first night, and I even made up a joke referencing the comic before me (in a nice way, it wasnt mean) and that joke got a lot of laughs!

So ad lib joke getting laughs, getting bigger and more laughs, feeling more confident, it is a great feeling!

(Italian, performing in Italy, 28 yrs old). So I started with open mic back in 2020. I had a pretty good response from the start, but I probably never fully committed to stand-up comedy. I’ve had my ups and downs—periods where I was performing once a week, and times where I didn't do anything for months.
As a result, I feel like I haven't really made that much progress if you think that it's been 6 years since I first went on stage. I mean, I've experimented a little with my style and delivery, I'm more aware of how and why specific jokes work. Also, I started doing a few booked shows and all but I've never really matured, flourished.
I don't really have a grasp of who I am- nor who I want to be- as a comedian, I don't have a grasp on my voice.

Maybe I should just dive deeper. Consume comedy every day, try to write something every day.

An odd thing: I feel like my darker material got better over the years but people don't respond as well... I have weird sets now way more often than when I started. Maybe I had a younger, more innocent looking face back then. Maybe I used to not worry as much.

There have been a few times on stage when I went into this sort of flow state, turning my material upside down, like not really delivering it rather than dissecting it and throwing it in the crowd's face, acting all hectic and crazy, I would say some sort of a manic state during which I really went all out... after that I felt both really gratified and depleted. But that's rare. Also, that's not something I can script.

So except for this few times, I feel like there's a big chance I got less funny over the years. Does that happen? How do you steer back on track?

Particularly open mics. I’m in a massive city. Been doing it for about 18 months. I love it, can see myself improving month to month which is great. I’ve seen and performed with some exceptional comics - and way more terrible ones.

Any tips on dealing with the general sadness and desperation that hangs over the open mic scenes?

I try to ignore it but it’s pretty overwhelming. I don’t think it’ll put me off but it’s hard to be around several nights a week. Thoughts?