Standup comedy – The Cave blog

The history of standup as a genre

Comedy is the oldest form of art. Even in the time of Aristotle it began its development. And not in vain it was given increased attention. After all, comedy makes fun of the problems of life, shows the way out of trouble and hardship.

Experimentation with different genres and work with the audience gradually gave birth to stand-up. As a separate acting act, it emerged in England in the 18 – 19 centuries. In those days, people were free to sit in the halls, could drink and smoke, and on stage stood a group of people and entertain people. Their program included a number with one comedian telling a funny story on a topic of interest to everyone.

In the 60’s in America, this genre began to gain considerable momentum. This is due to the appearance on stage Lenny Bruce – the most famous satirist, foul-mouthed and hooligan. This genre is in principle characterized by excessive freedom, especially in words. Therefore the person on stage must have a pronounced charisma.

In Russia, this genre began to take root in the television format, as laughter is superimposed on the video and editing is done. Many famous actors became professional stand-up comedians thanks to the freedom of the genre. Pavel Volya, Ruslan Bely, Alexander Nezlobin are still fans of the Russian public.

Among the English-speaking representatives of this genre we should remember with a good word Dylan Moran, Eddie Izzard, Billy Crystal, Jim Carrey.

Definition

The definition of a standup show is simple – it is an ordinary comedy performance, only one person acts in front of the audience. The most important judge and evaluator of this performance is the audience.

Standup comedians assess the audience’s reaction very carefully: if there is laughter in the room, the performance was a success. If there is no standing ovation and laughter, they still have to work on their lyrics. By the way, standup texts can be written by the standup comedian himself, or they can be written by specially hired people. There is even a practice where jokes are sent by ordinary residents of our country to the comedian’s email.

Where to meet

Stand-up comedians are appreciated for their truthful, sometimes brash, but sincere humor. It seems to us that they say whatever comes to mind. Indeed, improvisation happens when you have to somehow react to unplanned outcries from the audience. But for the most part, their phrasing is material with a clear structure, phrase composition and concept. And they can’t deviate too much from the theme.

It is a kind of work of literature, which is supplemented by caustic phrases and witty jokes. Because it is a work of literature, standup can be found not only in a television program. There are special publishers where this genre is used, such as in journalism. You can watch standup at home on television or at a concert of famous actors.

How to learn standup

The art of standup requires advance preparation for those who want to develop in it. You not only have to prepare joke phrases, but also develop competent and beautiful speech, so that there is no “what” or “sho” instead of “what,” etc. This genre is based on pre-conceived and ready-made stand-up jokes. There is practically no improvisation in it. Learn stand-up.

Stand up rules

Stand up consists of a certain sequence of phrases to get the audience excited. If you break this sequence, you lose the audience award. Remember, a joke in a performance consists of:

setup – one or more sentences that set a person up to laugh – that’s the first part of the joke;
zest – the second part, which the audience doesn’t expect.

Using these two points, you will achieve an explosive audience reaction. Your performance must retain intrigue. What are the other rules of standup:

Strictly use the structure of the joke, this genre won’t happen without setup and zest.
Express emotion on your line. The audience reads emotion; they have to believe what you’re saying.
Do not tear your veins if the performance did not work. Remember that not all the jokes you like will appeal to the audience.
Sometimes it takes years to prepare a successful performance. Accept that, but also continue to develop your sense of humor.
To become a standup comedian, remember, you must always use only your own material.
Plug in acting skills, non-verbal speech, so that actions and facial expressions are consistent. Then the audience will believe from the first minute of the performance, and you have a better chance of eliciting a laugh.
Check your material before you speak. The best leaders don’t just become one; they research themselves thoroughly, then “pitch” to the audience. Read more about how to become a leader in a group here.
Don’t dismiss the experiences of others. If you’re a female standup comedian in your group, don’t be shy about borrowing the expertise of already seasoned standup comedians. Learn from the mistakes of others, like a smart person.
Record yourself. Recording on a video or dictaphone will help you evaluate your performance and see the weaknesses and strengths from the outside. Based on the recording, you can more easily draw conclusions about how to behave on stage and how to sway the audience.
Test your jokes. To hone your skills, it’s best to do the same performance in three different venues where the audience won’t repeat themselves. A diverse audience for each subsequent performance will allow you to see if your jokes are as good for different segments of the population.
Prepare from start to finish. It’s best to start your experience with an “open mic,” where you’ll read a page of typed text (12-pin, enough for 3 minutes of speaking) in tight company. Start with general topics and end with personal experiences. This structure is better received by the audience. But don’t be wise: the simpler you talk, the better you will be understood.

How to Write Standup Comedy

If you dream of performing at a local open mic, writing a humorous script, or becoming a true master of stand-up comedy, use the tips below.

Watch and Learn

Study the humor of other comedians. Start with the big names of the world (Louis C.K., Eddie Murphy, George Carlin, Jimmy Carr, Jerry Seinfeld, Bill Burr): watch their early standup and later performances and analyze how their style has changed. Go to a comedy club for a live show to see how comedians structure their set. Notice how they open and close the show, how many bits are in each set. Sit in the back and observe the audience: how often do they laugh? What do they react to the most?

Gather material.

Use personal experience to prepare your performance. Analyze and find funny moments in your relationship with your partner, child, boss, colleague, or neighbor. In the first stages, you need to gather all the comical ideas. They don’t have to be ready-made jokes or witticisms, but just be things that make you laugh.

Look for curiosities related to your culture, the family you grew up in, the values instilled, the way of life. Write down any ideas, even minor ones, that may come in handy in the future. The best standup is personal standup. Comedians who make themselves the main characters in jokes often turn out to be the most interesting performers, to whose performances the audience responds vividly.

In an interview for The Guardian, Stephen Rosenfield, founder of the American Institute of Comedy, said: “The object of standup, like any other art form, is you. Originality comes from your approach to what you’re talking about.” [Learning laughter: an expert’s guide on how to master standup comedy, 2017]. To gather material about your life, make a list of everything that:

you’re annoyed by;
you love;
in your opinion, messes up this world;
you would like to change in your character;
you would like to change in your body.

Hone your observation skills and make a habit of recording funny situations from your life every day. Remember: the audience laughs when they recognize themselves in the story, so make sure your observation is not narrowly focused. For example, don’t use ideas that only people in a specific professional field will understand.

Write jokes.

When you’ve made a list of ideas, pick one and work with it: find a storyline and flesh out the set-up by answering the questions:

who are your characters?
where does the action take place?
what is the situation or what is the conflict?

Come up with one or more punchlines. In this case, use the semantic theory of humor developed by linguistics professor Victor Raskin, which states that a text is humorous and elicits a cognitive response if it:

contains an inconsistency;
two parts of it are contradictory.

Raskin illustrates his theory with the following joke:

A patient knocks on the doctor’s door.

– Is the doctor home? – he asks in a voice that has turned white with illness.

– No,” the doctor’s young, pretty wife whispers back. – Come in [Raskin V, 1985].

There is a discrepancy in this joke between the patient’s question and the doctor’s wife’s answer. The first part of the joke activates a special scenario in the listeners’ brains: the patient has come for medical help. Raskin calls such a scenario “doctor,” and reinforces it by pointing to the patient’s voice, seated with illness. But the doctor’s wife’s behavior is incompatible with the information embedded in this scenario, and then the audience begins to look for a new one to interpret the interaction between the doctor’s wife and the patient. A second scenario called “lover” is activated, and the audience concludes that the couple is involved in an illicit affair.

Simply put, a punchline is a plot twist that goes against the logical conclusion of the joke. Here’s another example from American actor and comedian Steve Martin: “I love women with a head on their shoulders. I hate necks.”

Make up as many funny phrases as you can and don’t be sad if the first jokes fail to make you laugh. Be patient and keep working.

Format your presentation.

Start by writing a 30-second snippet for your speech. Think of any weird thing you’ve done, a habit or a ticklish situation, and try to play it off by imagining yourself as a comedian-host doing the setup for the next artist’s performance. Record the 30-second set on video and show it to friends to get feedback.

Next, put together a 2-minute set by combining several jokes together. Think about the transitions so the bits don’t seem disjointed. And afterwards, try writing a 5-minute piece and ask friends or family for evaluations to check out the material. Don’t be afraid to tell jokes that aren’t perfect. Accept criticism, but remember that only you decide what your performance will be.

When you’ve gathered enough jokes for an hour-long show, organize them in a way that makes it seem natural. Always have spare bits in case you need to change direction.

Write the opening and closing

The opening and closing, which we mentioned earlier, are the most important components of a standup show. The opening is an opportunity to show the audience who you are, and the ending gives you a chance to make the performance whole and give it meaning. How do you do the opening and closing? Start immediately with a joke. You don’t need to introduce yourself or say that this is your first time on stage: it’s not funny.

If you don’t know what to end with, think of your performance as a story with a plot; this will help make a conclusion that satisfies the audience. Remember that the audience will remember the finale the best, so put your best jokes and important ideas at the end of your show.

Make a set list

A set list is a list of the jokes you plan to perform. Put it on a notepad or in your smartphone notebook. Having a set list will help you systematize ideas and remember jokes, saving you from parasitic words and “mooing” while performing on stage. As a study by psychology experts has shown, when a speaker has an abundance of filler words like “m-m-m” or “uh-uh,” the listener stops directing their attention to the content and instead focuses on the speaker’s diction and speech, which has a negative impact on audience understanding.

Rehearse your set.

Repeat the jokes in the order of the set list until you have them memorized. That way you’ll know exactly how to present each bit and how long it will take approximately. Also, a long rehearsal will help you figure out which parts of the jokes can be improved and which can be eliminated altogether.

The only way to know if your standup is good is to tell it to the audience. Gather friends, family, or other aspiring comedians and gauge from their reactions whether you have a chance at a comedy career. Rehearsing in public gives you the opportunity to: practice your physical gestures and later feel natural on stage; develop confidence; and edit your set. Don’t get attached to what you yourself think is funny. Pay attention to the reactions of those close to you and make appropriate edits: leave a joke if you get a positive response, remove it if you hear silence.