Standup Comedy Tips from Judy Carter

Once a month, the advanced class has a guest teacher and last night it was Dan Rosenberg, comic and author of “How Not to Suck as an Emcee.” Dan gave us some great tips. After all, if you finally get a booked at a comedy club, it will most likely be the opening spot where you also emcee the show. And as Dan says, “a bad host can kill a show. Even with a great headliner, a shitty emcee can ruin the night as hosting is the foundation of the show.”



Dan will be giving this workshop at the California Comedy Conference.
ONLY 2 MORE WEEKS LEFT TO REGISTER!!!
http://www.comedyworkshops.com/ccc.html

Here were some of his tips.

1. Get at least three interactions when you open a show. “Are there some people here who want to have fun?” “Anyone ready to laugh?” and so on. I got to see this tip work the next day as I had a gig in Racine, WI. I changed my opening to implement this tip and it worked like gang busters. With corporate gigs, very often I’m coming on to an ice cold group who is in the middle of eating dinner. Or my opening act was an accountant giving a powerpoint on next year’s budget forecast. Exciting. Using Dan’s tip, it took only a few minutes to bring everyone’s attention to the stage and get the energy and laughs flowing.


2. When emceeing, give comics great intros. And if you are a comic, always write out your intro on an index card. “ALWAYS write out a few credits and write out your name phonetically . Funny intros are great if you don’t have any credits. Never tell the emcee to, ‘Just say anything.’”


3. Reset the stage for the next comic, i.e., put the mic back in the stand, move the stool, and adjust the mic height for the next comic.


4. When introducing the next comic, do the “Wait and Shake.” Meaning, wait for them to come up, shake their hand, and THEN leave the stage.


5. Make sure you end the intro with the comic’s name as the punch line.

1. If someone bombs, don’t mention it. Show respect for your fellow comics.


2. Don’t start with blue material. If the show goes blue, then you can join in and “Blue it up.” But some times if the next comic is clean you’ll need to “Blue in down.”


3. Keep politics to yourself. As the emcee, your job is to be likeable and get the audience going, not alienate them.


4. Never make fun of the wait staff. They hang with the club bookers and the managers and if they like you, you have a better chance of being asked back.


5. Ask the club if there are any announcements that they’d like you to make. Makes you sound like a pro and helping them sell drinks and t-shirts is another way to get asked back.


6. Keep the show rolling. Don’t do a lot of time in-between acts. If someone kills, then don’t slow the show down with material. If a comic tanks, then bring out you killer material to bring the audience back. You’re the host and it’s up to you to make it a great night for the audience as well as the comics.

Dan gave us 25 tips, if you want the rest of them, then get his book, “How not to suck as an emcee.”

Dan Rosenberg will be doing his “How not to suck as an Emcee” workshop at the California Comedy Conference. Details at:
http://www.comedyworkshops.com/ccc.html