#comedy in performance

[jalenarcherbsu27]

THEA 314 Comedy In Performance Blog - Ali Siddiq: What inspired me

Ali Siddiq, the hilarious comedian from Houston, Texas, recently dropped by our Comedy in Performance Class, led by the one and only Joe Clair! What a surprise! After his unforgettable visit, Professor Clair encouraged us to dive into Ali’s comedy and uncover what fires us up in the world of laughter. Boy, did we find some gems!

One standout performance that had me rolling was "White People Love Trail Mix" from Comedy Central. From the very start with his Father's Day anecdotes to the entertaining tales about his son, Hassan, and his hilarious interactions with "good, fine white folks," Ali had me in stitches!

What truly inspires me about Ali Siddiq is his incredible talent for storytelling—his voice, his facial expressions, and the way he effortlessly navigates an array of emotions keep the audience on the edge of their seats. His clever observations about race, like when he talks about his daughter being on a swim team—a sport where you don’t typically see a lot of black people—are both insightful and laugh-out-loud funny.

He also has this knack for transforming everyday objects into punchlines that elevate his stories into something truly memorable. Ali embodies the physicality of comedy in a way that brings every joke to life. Ultimately, he inspires me to embrace my own unique voice and reminds me that in comedy, spontaneity is key—we should say whatever pops into our minds that makes us laugh!

From his clever takes on white stereotypes to his lighthearted stories about his family and that quirky encounter with a white guy on a bench, Ali Siddiq is simply hilarious, and he’s a huge inspiration for me! This was such an exciting experience, and it’s clear why he has a special place in the comedy scene!

[jalenarcherbsu27]

THEA 314 Comedy In Performance Blog - Unique Perspective In Comedy

In this comedy performance I found on Youtube (I looked up comedians vs hecklers), I came across comedian Troy Bond, whose video is titled, "Heckler calls me a racist", and boy, was she RAGEBAITING.

After Troy made a political joke about feeling bad for voting for Joe Biden and being one of the most pro-anti-Trump comedians as a joke, a woman in the crowd—a Black woman—became highly offended and called Troy a "bitch." Troy responded, shouting, "Why do you think I'm doing this for a living? Do you think I was a football player? I'm a bitch, damn it!" He continued, "There's nothing you can say to me that I haven't already said six inches from the mirror." He concluded with, "You're the first person going in my suicide note tonight. Have a good night, Kamala Harris." And the crowd went wild, including the black lady getting escorted out of the comedy club.

In my personal perspective, after watching this, I can relate to what Troy Bond said about being called a "bitch." Even now, in college, I find that whenever I talk to people, they often assume I'm a nerd because of my appearance and the way I speak. I connect with that perspective because I enjoy being funny and cracking jokes, whether they are corny or genuinely funny. The point is, I'm no football player, and I don't have the money or the attention from ladies that comes with that. Or maybe I will… XD.

[jalenarcherbsu27]

THEA 314 Comedy In Performance Blog - Assumptions, Target Assumptions, Interpretation, and Re-Interpretation in the real world

Scenario: At a Coffee Shop

1. Assumption

This is the basic belief the audience naturally makes based on everyday experience.

If someone orders a complicated coffee, they’re probably really into coffee.

That’s normal. We’ve all seen the person with the long order.

2. Target Assumption

This is the specific assumption you’re going to mess with for comedy.

People who know a lot of coffee terms are knowledgeable and sophisticated.

This is what you’re setting up to knock over.

3. Interpretation (What the audience thinks is happening)

You present information that supports the target assumption.

“The guy in front of me orders a triple-shot oat-milk half-sweet caramel macchiato with cinnamon foam and pauses like he’s choosing a wine for royalty.”

Audience interpretation:

This guy knows coffee

He’s refined

Maybe a little pretentious

So far, everything lines up with their assumption.

4. Re-interpretation (The comedy turn)

Now you add new information that forces the audience to re-evaluate everything.

“Then the barista asks, ‘Is this your usual?’ And he goes, ‘I don’t know. My girlfriend texted this to me. If this is wrong, I’m not going home tonight.’”

💥 Re-interpretation:

He’s not sophisticated

He’s scared

He’s basically a hostage

The audience has to mentally rewind:

“Ohhh — he never knew coffee. He’s just following instructions under threat.”

That mental snap is the laugh.

[jalenarcherbsu27]

THEA 314 Comedy In Performance - Assignment 1 - Something I saw funny and why Reflection Blog

Ricky Gervais' Monologue - 2020 Golden Globes Awards

One of the funniest things I’ve seen was watching Ricky Gervais’ opening monologue at the 2020 Golden Globe Awards. If you’re not familiar with Ricky Gervais, he’s a British comedian famous for his brutally dark humor and absolutely zero regard for anyone’s comfort level—especially powerful people. He’s also legendary for roasting the audience right to their faces, which is exactly what he did that night.

From the moment he stepped on stage, it was chaos (the entertaining kind). He casually dropped sensitive rumors, bold allegations, and painfully true comments about the actors sitting just a few feet away from him. Some jokes had people laughing out loud, while others sucked the air out of the room and left the audience visibly sweating. You could practically hear the collective gulp.

One of my all-time favorite jokes was when he said people would be better off at home watching a Netflix show called Afterlife, instead of sitting through the Golden Globes. The show, he explained, is about a man trying to kill himself after his wife dies of cancer—but plot twist—he doesn’t kill himself because there’s a second season. Ricky then compared that situation to Jeffrey Epstein, and boom… the room went wild in the most uncomfortable way possible. Nervous laughter everywhere. The joke hit hard because Epstein was linked to many powerful, well-known A-list celebrities that people admire, making it extra tense. (Epstein, for context, was infamous for horrific crimes, including human trafficking—especially involving children.)

Ricky absolutely killed it as host, but the more he leaned into that joke—and others like it—the clearer it became that this was probably his final time hosting the Golden Globes. And honestly? Worth it. His ability to weaponize dark humor and brutally honest roasting proves he knows exactly how to get under people’s skin—leaving them shocked, sweaty, and questioning their life choices… all while the rest of us laugh from the safety of our couches.