Date: 20 May, 2011
Venue: Hollywood Hotel
Ooh. A new venue means new opportunities. I think there's something to be said for trying to perform at as many open mics as possible, because there's always a slightly different crowd at each one, and the more people you expose yourself to, the better.
The room is in the basement of the Hollywood Hotel. It's closeby and there's sometimes actually an audience, it seems. Slightly different crowd leads to different opportunities. My set was almost all new jokes, and that went better. This lead to one of the comics taking time after my set to tell me about another bar that had another open mic that night, would I be interested in going?
Yes. Yes I would
Date: later that night
Venue: Westwood Brewing Company (brew co)
There's a lot to like about this space. It's late at night, It's got good food and people will actually wander in from the party going on outside. They'll all be drunk, but that's sometimes good.
I feel like I'm starting to get somewhere now. I've got people who like my premises. Open mic #24 wasn't good, but compared to that, open mic #s 25 and 26 were better. And that's why I do it.
Showing posts with label Why I do this. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Why I do this. Show all posts
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Friday, April 22, 2011
Open mic 24?
Date: 17 April, 2011
Venue: Tribal cafe.
This was my first time performing at the tribal cafe. With a name like that, yes it is a place where they talk about removing toxins on the menu and it has ads for drum circles in the board at the front. As though 4 a gallon gas didn't make me feel guilty enough for driving here by myself.
Anyways, I need to do 2 things: I need to be more social with comics and I need to get some business cards. Cause I did a damn good job tonight. It felt solid, and the FBI Intern bit worked well. I think there's a lot of material there I need to explore. Like, skipping over the urge to tell new and unproven stuff and telling the jokes that are within my wheelhouse was really what it took.
So, I'm going to re-number a couple of these. Open mics are one thing, but auditions are another and workshops are a third. So 500 open mics stand between me and what I'm going after... not 500 open mics and workshops and whatever else there is.
Venue: Tribal cafe.
This was my first time performing at the tribal cafe. With a name like that, yes it is a place where they talk about removing toxins on the menu and it has ads for drum circles in the board at the front. As though 4 a gallon gas didn't make me feel guilty enough for driving here by myself.
Anyways, I need to do 2 things: I need to be more social with comics and I need to get some business cards. Cause I did a damn good job tonight. It felt solid, and the FBI Intern bit worked well. I think there's a lot of material there I need to explore. Like, skipping over the urge to tell new and unproven stuff and telling the jokes that are within my wheelhouse was really what it took.
So, I'm going to re-number a couple of these. Open mics are one thing, but auditions are another and workshops are a third. So 500 open mics stand between me and what I'm going after... not 500 open mics and workshops and whatever else there is.
Saturday, April 16, 2011
open mic 23
Date: 15 April 2011
Venue: Silverlake Lounge
I'm feeling really good. I opened with a pun that the audience adored. Things went a bit downhill from there, but I know that I have a solid joke that kills. This is promising.
A lot of it comes in getting people's attention. If you lose them at the start, nobody's going to pay attention because why bother? You haven't established yourself as someone worthy of attention. It's very harsh, but it's how things are: first impressions matter.
I tried to stick to the schtick I'd set up in my last post. FBI Intern hit a bit of a snag, but I think with sticking to my guns, I can make it funny again. I also tried to throw in some new material, which didn't go over as well as I'd hoped. There's a big gap between 'this is funny' and 'this is something I think is amusing' and that difference is that an idea that has potential isn't enough... I have to say what that potential is and define it. Once you claim the idea, it's yours.
That aside, I think I've got a little less work ahead of me. I've got some solid premises, and I really need to hit up more venues. Tomorrow I'm going to Tsunamedy. This should be fun.
Also, I have a fan! Phil, a guy who's been here for 3 weeks came up after my set and said he thought I was funny. Knowing that makes things a lot easier. I really need to start reaching out to other comics though.
Venue: Silverlake Lounge
I'm feeling really good. I opened with a pun that the audience adored. Things went a bit downhill from there, but I know that I have a solid joke that kills. This is promising.
A lot of it comes in getting people's attention. If you lose them at the start, nobody's going to pay attention because why bother? You haven't established yourself as someone worthy of attention. It's very harsh, but it's how things are: first impressions matter.
I tried to stick to the schtick I'd set up in my last post. FBI Intern hit a bit of a snag, but I think with sticking to my guns, I can make it funny again. I also tried to throw in some new material, which didn't go over as well as I'd hoped. There's a big gap between 'this is funny' and 'this is something I think is amusing' and that difference is that an idea that has potential isn't enough... I have to say what that potential is and define it. Once you claim the idea, it's yours.
That aside, I think I've got a little less work ahead of me. I've got some solid premises, and I really need to hit up more venues. Tomorrow I'm going to Tsunamedy. This should be fun.
Also, I have a fan! Phil, a guy who's been here for 3 weeks came up after my set and said he thought I was funny. Knowing that makes things a lot easier. I really need to start reaching out to other comics though.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Open mic 3
Venue: Newmarket Hotel
Date: 20 September, 2010
This is probably the best room in Brisbane. There's a lot of expectation riding on this one.
Things weren't looking so hot. It was another rainy night, and people weren't filling up the room. Twenty minutes before showtime, and it looked like there wouldn't be more than 15 people in the audience. Then a wave came in. Not like 200, but easily 30 people in total. That's pretty good for a bar without a dedicated room for comedy.
30 faces. 30 sets of eyes staring at me. That's a lot of pressure. Okay, not really. But it's the largest room I've ever played this year.
Man, I rocked it. I'm not going to say it was easy, or that I'm somehow amazing and immune from bombing, but tonight felt great. So yay, go me.
I'm gonna be nitpicky. I really need to have better segues between jokes, or better ways of mentioning things that comics brought up beforehand. I also think the Brisbane bus joke needs a tighter intro. But I cut out a lot of fat, and threw out some jokes I'd written a long time ago that I hadn't performed yet. They went well. I think my only bit that didn't go over as well as it could have was the last bit.
Here's where I'm a bad comic. I borrowed the structure of a Eugene Mirman joke. Not word for word, like some open mic-goers I've seen before, *cough*Gonzo*cough*, but enough of the gist of it. Like if you saw them side-by-side, you'd be like 'hey, these two look kinda similar'. In the ultimate karmic turnabout, it didn't go over as well as I thought it would. That sounds like a good death knell for that joke.
It went well. The organiser gave me a handshake during the intermission and said that I'd got some good stuff. People are nice, but it still is a good sign. I'm definitely going to be that comic who's using new stuff all the time. I'm okay with that.
I've got funny jokes. I'm going to try and get video of them soon.
Date: 20 September, 2010
This is probably the best room in Brisbane. There's a lot of expectation riding on this one.
Things weren't looking so hot. It was another rainy night, and people weren't filling up the room. Twenty minutes before showtime, and it looked like there wouldn't be more than 15 people in the audience. Then a wave came in. Not like 200, but easily 30 people in total. That's pretty good for a bar without a dedicated room for comedy.
30 faces. 30 sets of eyes staring at me. That's a lot of pressure. Okay, not really. But it's the largest room I've ever played this year.
Man, I rocked it. I'm not going to say it was easy, or that I'm somehow amazing and immune from bombing, but tonight felt great. So yay, go me.
I'm gonna be nitpicky. I really need to have better segues between jokes, or better ways of mentioning things that comics brought up beforehand. I also think the Brisbane bus joke needs a tighter intro. But I cut out a lot of fat, and threw out some jokes I'd written a long time ago that I hadn't performed yet. They went well. I think my only bit that didn't go over as well as it could have was the last bit.
Here's where I'm a bad comic. I borrowed the structure of a Eugene Mirman joke. Not word for word, like some open mic-goers I've seen before, *cough*Gonzo*cough*, but enough of the gist of it. Like if you saw them side-by-side, you'd be like 'hey, these two look kinda similar'. In the ultimate karmic turnabout, it didn't go over as well as I thought it would. That sounds like a good death knell for that joke.
It went well. The organiser gave me a handshake during the intermission and said that I'd got some good stuff. People are nice, but it still is a good sign. I'm definitely going to be that comic who's using new stuff all the time. I'm okay with that.
I've got funny jokes. I'm going to try and get video of them soon.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
The manifesto
People say to follow your dreams; do what you love instead of what makes you money. Some of these people are lucky enough to already be famous. Some aren't doing what they're truly passionate about, and instead are doing something to pay the bills. What happens is that most of us are doing things we'd rather not be doing because our dreams are just a bit too far away.
I'm fighting long odds. Comedy is a soul-crushing business, I'm told. Comedy is next to impossible to make it big in. If I believe that I stand a good chance of making it big, I'm delusional. I admit and openly accept that I don't stand a good chance of being successful in my goal. That's the basis of this blog: to see if I can actually do it.
Why am I doing this? Because I want to. Because I'm a hopeless optimist who will either be sorely disappointed in the bitter reality, or I'll somehow get lucky. If I fail at my goal, feel free to mock me. Feel free to join in the chorus of people telling me that I need to grow up and face the real world.
I admit that wanting something isn't enough. There are loads of people out there who want to be famous, to be rich, to be something special. We can't get what we want just because we want it really badly. But if years of focused dedication towards a goal isn't enough to make it happen, then I don't know what is.
The current thinking says that expertise and virtuosity in something only emerges after 10,000 hours of focused and dedicated practice. That's just under 3 hours per day, every day, for ten years. That's working a full-time job for 4 years and 10 months. It takes a lot. Why do you think that so many people stop before ever getting to that level?
I've been trying to be funny for longer than I can remember. I've been writing since age 13, and it took four years for that to click. I've probably put in 1000 hours already, but none of that matters. I'm setting this arbitrary goal of 500 open mics for myself.
I want to break the mold and do what I want because it makes me happy. I might succeed. I probably will fail. But I'd rather fail doing something that fulfills me than succeed at something that leaves me unsatisfied.
I'm fighting long odds. Comedy is a soul-crushing business, I'm told. Comedy is next to impossible to make it big in. If I believe that I stand a good chance of making it big, I'm delusional. I admit and openly accept that I don't stand a good chance of being successful in my goal. That's the basis of this blog: to see if I can actually do it.
Why am I doing this? Because I want to. Because I'm a hopeless optimist who will either be sorely disappointed in the bitter reality, or I'll somehow get lucky. If I fail at my goal, feel free to mock me. Feel free to join in the chorus of people telling me that I need to grow up and face the real world.
I admit that wanting something isn't enough. There are loads of people out there who want to be famous, to be rich, to be something special. We can't get what we want just because we want it really badly. But if years of focused dedication towards a goal isn't enough to make it happen, then I don't know what is.
The current thinking says that expertise and virtuosity in something only emerges after 10,000 hours of focused and dedicated practice. That's just under 3 hours per day, every day, for ten years. That's working a full-time job for 4 years and 10 months. It takes a lot. Why do you think that so many people stop before ever getting to that level?
I've been trying to be funny for longer than I can remember. I've been writing since age 13, and it took four years for that to click. I've probably put in 1000 hours already, but none of that matters. I'm setting this arbitrary goal of 500 open mics for myself.
I want to break the mold and do what I want because it makes me happy. I might succeed. I probably will fail. But I'd rather fail doing something that fulfills me than succeed at something that leaves me unsatisfied.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)