#comedy performers

[mariocki]

Unlikely horror stars

10. Comedy performers

Owen Wilson in The Haunting (1999)

Jack Black in I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (1998)

Dan Aykroyd in Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983)

Eugene Levy in Cannibal Girls (1973)

Ben Stiller in Highway to Hell (1991)

Sarah Silverman in Gravy (2015)

[mariocki]

Unlikely horror stars

6. Comedy performers

Leslie Nielsen in Prom Night (1980)

Terry-Thomas in Vault of Horror (1973)

Christopher Lloyd in Schizoid (1980)

Jackie Coogan in The Prey (1983)

Hugh Grant in The Lair of the White Worm (1988)

Jon Stewart in The Faculty (1998)

[fordhampr]

ROAD TRIP! COMEDY HYPNOTIST ADAM GRAEME ENTERTAINS THE CDN LEGION MEMBERS of TRENTON, ONTARIO

ROAD TRIP! COMEDY HYPNOTIST ADAM GRAEME ENTERTAINS THE CDN LEGION MEMBERS of TRENTON, ONTARIO

I love joining clients at gigs, especially when it involves taking a road trip and visiting audiences outside of the big city. Last night, I joined brilliant stage hypnotist ADAM GRAEME  [www.adamgraeme.com] when he entertained members of Trenton, Ontario’s Canadian Legion(Branch 110) – the event hall was full of enthusiastic folks, some of whom were definitely skeptical, but within a matter of a…

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[topherstanis]

Making a living at stand up

Making a living at being a stand up comedian comes with a number of challenges but can be hugely rewarding for those who are passionate about making people laugh.  First and foremost, a successful stand up comedian makes the audience feel comfortable and their performance appear effortless, masking the huge number of hours and work that has gone into writing, rehearsing and perfecting their art.

There are three key stages to the work of a stand up comedian:  planning, performing and promoting.

Planning is not what you do to get started, it’s what you will do throughout your whole career as a stand up.  As an aspiring comedian, plan out how you intend to develop in front of an audience.  Start out with a bunch of ‘friendly’ critics, usually family and friends.  As you become more confident, plan out which open mic events you can attend.  Don’t be too eager to rush into paid performances.  Of course if you are intending to make a living, you will want to be moving onto clubs and other paid venues as soon as you can, but rushing through this stage of your development as a stand up means you are missing the opportunity to get really confident in front of an audience.  You will also writing material and planning out what material will make the cut and to include in your routines.

When it comes to performing, try get as much experience as possible.  Once you have the confidence and feel ready, then is the time to get in touch with club owners and booking agents to try get those all important paid bookings.  You will get used to identifying the type of audience the club generally attracts and any expectations the club owner has in terms of announcements you have to make. 

At this stage, you are moving from being a novice to trying to make a living.  It is not enough to just turn up and do your stint on stage.  You should be prepared to promote yourself.  In the current era of social media, most stand up comedians are turning to sites such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube in an effort to raise their profile.  Being funny is not enough and perhaps unsurprisingly, club owners are more likely to book a performer who can demonstrate an active following on social media that results in more ‘bums on seats’.

Hopefully your hard work and dedication will pay off and your dream will come to fruition.  If you decide that after all, stand up is not the career for you, it will be at least one to cross off your bucket list!